[World Resources Institute, 7 October 2018]

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has released a special report detailing the impacts of warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. This report is the response to a UNFCCC invitation when the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015. The IPCC report details the differences between the impact of a 1.5 degree increase in warming and a 2 degree increase and shows that even a .5-degree difference can drastically increase the prevalence and intensity of extreme weather events and sea level increases that is directly tied to climate change. The report also emphasizes the need for a comprehensive and multi-prong solution that considers not only decarbonization of the economy, but also reforestation, consumerism, and carbon captures and storage technologies. Dr. Andrew Steer, President and CEO of the World Resources Institute, stated, “Limiting warming to 1.5 degrees will require a radical transformation of economic and social systems at a scale never seen before. This is difficult, but by no means impossible. We know how to do it, and we know that it will lead to a much healthier economy and much healthier citizens. We now know that accelerated climate action can lead to large economic benefits, including a $26 trillion win…The urgent message of the IPCC report must be carried into the halls of power and the negotiation rooms at COP24. This should be a moral imperative for all leaders around the world.”

The full report can be found here: http://www.ipcc.ch/report/sr15/