OUR GLOBAL CHALLENGE
Climate Change is the defining issue of our time and we are at a defining moment.
Without drastic action today, adapting to these impacts in the future will be more difficult and costly.
The greatest threat humanity has ever faced
UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS
The Human Rights Council today recognised for the first time that having a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is indeed a human right, in its resolution 48/13. The Council called on States to work together, and with other partners, to implement this newly recognized right. At the same time, through a second resolution (48/14), the Council also increased its focus on the human rights impacts of climate change by establishing a Special Rapporteur dedicated specifically to that issue.
GENEVA, 8 October 2021
OHCHR
2020-2030
10 years to transform the future of humanity
or destabilize the planet
JOHAN ROCKSTRÖM
CO2 EMISSIONS
GLOBAL CARBON ATLAS
A platform to explore and visualize the most up-to-date data on carbon fluxes resulting from human activities and natural processes. The graphics and data sources are made available in the belief that their wide dissemination will lead to new knowledge and better-informed decisions to limit and cope with human-induced climate change.
A PLANETARY EMERGENCY
GLOBAL COMMONS ALLIANCE
Explore real-time data
#ClimateStrike
"The climate crisis has already been solved. We already have all the facts and solutions. All we have to do is to wake up and change." GRETA THUNBERG
The Half-Earth Project
"With science at its core and our transcendent moral obligation to the rest of life at its heart, the Half-Earth Project is working to conserve half the land and sea to safeguard the bulk of biodiversity, including ourselves." EDWARD O. WILSON
DEGROWTH NOW
Degrowth is an idea that critiques the global capitalist system which pursues growth at all costs, causing human exploitation and environmental destruction.
FACTS
"Scientific evidence for warming of the climate system is unequivocal"
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Global Temperature Rise
The planet's average surface temperature has risen about 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit (0.9 degrees Celsius) since the late 19th century, a change driven largely by increased carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere. Most of the warming occurred in the past 35 years.
Warming Oceans
The planet's average surface temperature has risen about 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit since the late 19th century, a change driven largely by increased carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere.
Shrinking Ice Sheets
The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have decreased in mass. Data from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment show Greenland lost an average of 286 billion tons of ice per year between 1993 and 2016, while Antarctica lost about 127 billion tons of ice per year during the same time period. The rate of Antarctica ice mass loss has tripled in the last decade.
Glacial Retreat
Glaciers are retreating almost everywhere around the world - including in the Alps, Himalayas, Andes, Rockies, Alaska and Africa.
Decreased Snow Cover
Satellite observations reveal that the amount of spring snow cover in the Northern Hemisphere has decreased over the past five decades and that the snow is melting earlier.
Sea Level Rise
Global sea level rose about 8 inches (0,2 meters) in the last century. The rate in the last two decades, however, is nearly double that of the last century and is accelerating slightly every year.
Declining Arctic Sea Ice
Both the extent and thickness of Arctic sea ice has declined rapidly over the last several decades.
Extreme Events
The number of record high temperature events in the United States has been increasing, while the number of record low temperature events has been decreasing, since 1950. The U.S. has also witnessed increasing numbers of intense rainfall events.
Ocean Acidification
Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the acidity of surface ocean waters has increased by about 30%. This increase is the result of humans emitting more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and hence more being absorbed into the oceans. The amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by the upper layer of the oceans is increasing by about 2 billion tons per year.
Biodiversity
The Earth’s life support system is failing. Nearly everywhere, the various forms of non-human life are in decline. This ongoing decline endangers economies, livelihoods, food security, and the quality of life of people everywhere. But at the same time, there is considerable room for hope, based on many solutions with proven track records.
SOLUTIONS
"The UN has prioritized the following action portfolios, which are recognized as having high potential to curb greenhouse gas emissions and increased global action on adaptation and resilience."
Finance
Mobilizing public and private sources of finance to drive decarbonization of all priority sectors and advance resilience.
Energy Transition
Accelerating the shift away from fossil fuels and towards renewable energy, as well as making significant gains in energy efficiency.
Industry Transition
Transforming industries such as Oil and Gas, Steel, Cement, Chemicals and Information Technology.
Nature-Based Solutions
Reducing emissions, increasing sink capacity and enhancing resilience within and across forestry, agriculture, oceans and food systems, including through biodiversity conservation, leveraging supply chains and technology.
Cities and Local Action
Advancing mitigation and resilience at urban and local levels, with a focus on new commitments on low-emission buildings, mass transport and urban infrastructure; and resilience for the urban poor.
Resilience and Adaptation
Advancing global efforts to address and manage the impacts and risks of climate change, particularly in those communities and nations most vulnerable.
Mitigation Strategy
Generate momentum for ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and long-term strategies to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Youth Engagement and Public Mobilization
To mobilize people worldwide to take action on climate change and ensure that young people are integrated and represented across all aspects of the Summit, including the six transformational areas.
Social and Political Drivers
Advance commitments in areas that affect people’s well-being, such as reducing air pollution, generating decent jobs, and strengthening climate adaptation strategies and protect workers and vulnerable groups.