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	Developing countries call for loss and damage finance to address rising impacts of climate change by OHCHR, CVF, IIED, CAN International, agencies   Climate change the greatest threat the world has ever faced, UN expert warns. (OHCHR)   Human-induced climate change is the largest, most pervasive threat to the natural environment and societies the world has ever experienced, and the poorest countries are paying the heaviest price, a UN expert said.   “Throughout the world, human rights are being negatively impacted and violated as a consequence of climate change. This includes the right to life, health, food, development, self-determination, water and sanitation, work, adequate housing and freedom from violence, sexual exploitation, trafficking and slavery,” said Ian Fry, UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change, in a report to the General Assembly.   “There is an enormous injustice being manifested by developed economies against the poorest and least able to cope. Inaction by developed economies and major corporations to take responsibility for drastically reducing their greenhouse gas emissions has led to demands for ‘climate reparations’ for losses incurred. The G20 members for instance, account for 78 per cent of emissions over the last decade.”   The Special Rapporteur’s report focuses on the topics of mitigation action, loss and damage, access and inclusion, and the protection of climate rights defenders.   “The overall effect of inadequate actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is creating a human rights catastrophe, and the costs of these climate change related disasters are enormous,” Fry said.   Those most affected and suffering the greatest losses are the least able to participate in current decision-making and more must be done to ensure they have a say in their future, including children and youth, women, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and minorities.   Fry also raised deep concern about climate rights defenders. “As groups and communities become increasingly frustrated with the lack of action on climate change, they have turned to protests and public interventions to bear witnesses to the climate emergency. Sadly, we are seeing many climate rights defenders persecuted by governments and security organisations. Some defenders have even been killed.”   The expert emphasised that indigenous peoples, in particular, have been the target of serious attacks and human rights abuses.   Fry presented several recommendations to the General Assembly, including a proposed High-Level Mitigation Commitment Forum to be held in 2023, the establishment of a consultative group of finance experts to define the modalities and rules for the operation of a Loss and Damage Finance Facility, and a climate change redress and grievance mechanism to allow vulnerable communities to seek recourse for damages incurred.   http://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/thematic-reports/a77226-promotion-and-protection-human-rights-context-climate-change http://www.lossanddamagecollaboration.org/publication/cost-of-delay-why-finance-to-address-loss-and-damage-must-be-agreed-at-cop27 http://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/189-million-people-year-affected-extreme-weather-developing-countries-rich-countries http://thecvf.org/our-voice/statements/observers/simon-stiell-the-international-community-must-together-steer-a-new-course-of-climate-action/ http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/oct/26/current-emissions-pledges-will-lead-to-catastrophic-climate-breakdown-says-un http://unfccc.int/news/climate-plans-remain-insufficient-more-ambitious-action-needed-now http://news.un.org/en/story/2022/10/1129887 http://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/more-bad-news-planet-greenhouse-gas-levels-hit-new-highs   Sep. 2022   Countries should impose windfall taxes on fossil fuel companies and divert the money to vulnerable nations suffering worsening losses from the climate crisis, the United Nations secretary general has urged.   Antonio Guterres said that “polluters must pay” for the escalating damage caused by heatwaves, floods, drought and other climate impacts, and demanded that it was “high time to put fossil fuel producers, investors and enablers on notice”.   “Today, I am calling on all developed economies to tax the windfall profits of fossil fuel companies,” Guterres said in a speech to the UN general assembly on Tuesday. “Those funds should be redirected in two ways – to countries suffering loss and damage caused by the climate crisis and to people struggling with rising food and energy prices.”   Guterres’s appeal came in his most urgent, and bleakest, speech to date on the state of the planet, and the will of governments to change course.   His first words were: “Our world is in big trouble.”   “Let’s have no illusions. We are in rough seas. A winter of global discontent is on the horizon, a cost-of-living crisis is raging, trust is crumbling, inequalities are exploding and our planet is burning,” he told the assembly. “We have a duty to act and yet we are gridlocked in colossal global dysfunction. The international community is not ready or willing to tackle the big dramatic challenges of our age.”   The lacerating speech, delivered at the UN headquarters in New York, echoes calls from activists to tax major oil and gas firms currently enjoying record profits in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In July, Exxon announced it had made a record quarterly profit of $17.8bn, while Chevron unveiled its own three-month record profit, of $11.6bn. BP, meanwhile, made a $8.5bn profit in the same period.   Under Guterres’s proposal, revenue from the taxes would flow to predominantly developing countries suffering “loss and damage” from global heating, to be invested in early warning systems, mopping up from disasters and other initiatives to build resilience. Vulnerable countries are poised to leverage the UN general assembly week to ask rich nations for a “climate-related and justice-based” global tax to pay for loss and damage.   Guterres has previously accused governments of having an “addiction” to fossil fuels and has called new investments in oil, coal and gas “moral and economic madness”.   But his speech on Tuesday was particularly pointed, delivered on the dais of the UN general assembly and following the secretary general’s recent visit to Pakistan, where floods from what he called “a monsoon on steroids” have submerged a third of the country and displaced millions of people.   “Our planet is burning,” Guterres said, calling on world leaders to to end their “suicidal war against nature”.   “The climate crisis is the defining issue of our time,” he added. “It must be the first priority of every government and multilateral organization. And yet climate action is being put on the back burner – despite overwhelming public support around the world.”   “We have a rendezvous with climate disaster … The hottest summers of today may be the coolest summers of tomorrow. Once-in-a-lifetime climate shocks may soon become once-a-year events. And with every climate disaster, we know that women and girls are the most affected. The climate crisis is a case study in moral and economic injustice.”   Governments must stage an “intervention” to break their addiction to fossil fuels, Guterres said, by targeting not only the extractive companies themselves but the entire infrastructure of businesses that support them.   “That includes the banks, private equity, asset managers and other financial institutions that continue to invest and underwrite carbon pollution,” said the secretary general.   “And it includes the massive public relations machine raking in billions to shield the fossil fuel industry from scrutiny. Just as they did for the tobacco industry decades before, lobbyists and spin doctors have spewed harmful misinformation. Fossil fuel interests need to spend less time averting a PR disaster – and more time averting a planetary one.”   Guterres said it was “high time to move beyond endless discussions” and deliver finance for vulnerable countries and for wealthy nations to double adaption funding by 2025, as they promised to do at UN climate talks in Scotland last year. A further round of talks, known as Cop27, will take place in Egypt in November, in which loss and damage is set to be a central issue.   Although governments have agreed to restrain global heating to 1.5C above pre-industrial times, almost all countries are lagging in their efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions quickly enough to avoid this level of heating and therefore avert catastrophic climate impacts.   Emissions have already rebounded to pre-pandemic levels and an analysis this week showed there are plenty of known fossil fuel reserves in the world still left to burn – enough to unleash 3.5tn tons of greenhouse gases, which would smash the carbon budget before we get to 1.5C seven times over.   http://news.un.org/en/story/2022/09/1127071 http://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/20/un-secretary-general-tax-fossil-fuel-companies-climate-crisis http://www.srpoverty.org/2022/10/17/press-release-increase-benefits-and-wages-in-line-with-inflation-or-lives-will-be-lost-un-poverty-expert/ http://unctad.org/press-material/unctad-warns-policy-induced-global-recession-inadequate-financial-support-leaves http://policydialogue.org/publications/working-papers/end-austerity-a-global-report-on-budget-cuts-and-harmful-social-reforms-in-2022-25/   We must have zero tolerance for net-zero greenwashing. (UN News)   While a growing number of governments and non-State actors are pledging to be carbon-free, the criteria for net-zero commitments can have loopholes wide enough to “drive a diesel truck through”, the UN Secretary-General decried as his expert group on the matter published its first report.   The report slams greenwashing – misleading the public to believe that a company or entity is doing more to protect the environment than it is – and weak net-zero pledges and provides a roadmap to bring integrity to net-zero commitments by industry, financial institutions, cities and regions and to support a global, equitable transition to a sustainable future.   According to the experts, actors cannot claim to be ‘net zero’ while continuing to build or invest in new fossil fuel supply or any kind of environmentally destructive activities. They can’t also participate or have their partners participate in lobbying activities against climate change or just report on one part of their business's assets while hiding the rest.   “We must have zero tolerance for net-zero greenwashing. Today’s Expert Group report is a guide to ensure credible, accountable net-zero pledges,” António Guterres said at the launch at the report.   Last year at COP26 in Glasgow, Mr. Guterres announced that he would appoint an Expert Group to address a ‘surplus of confusion and deficit of credibility’ over net-zero targets of non-State entities. The group’s first report is the result of intense work and consultations over seven months and reflects the best advice of the 17 experts selected by the UN chief.   Through 10 practical recommendations, the report provides clarity in four key areas as defined by the Secretary-General: environmental integrity; credibility; accountability; and the role of governments.   The report’s recommendations, as explained by the UN chief   1. Promises cannot be a ‘toxic cover-up’   According to the report, net-zero pledges must in line with the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenarios limiting warming to 1.5 degrees.   “That means global emissions must decline by at least 45 per cent by 2030 – and reach net zero by 2050. Pledges should have interim targets every five years starting in 2025,” the Secretary-General explained.   The targets must also cover all greenhouse emissions and all their scopes. For financial institutions this means all of their finance activities, and for businesses and cities it means all emissions – direct, indirect and those originating from supply chains.   “The message is clear to all those managing existing voluntary initiatives – as well as CEOs, mayors and governors committing to net-zero: Abide by this standard and update your guidelines right away – and certainly no later than COP28,” Mr. Guterres underscored.   The UN chief also sent a strong message to fossil fuel companies and their “financial enablers” that have pledges that exclude core products and activities poisoning the planet and urged them to review their promises and align them with the report’s guidance.   “Using bogus ‘net-zero’ pledges to cover up massive fossil fuel expansion is reprehensible. It is rank deception. This toxic cover-up could push our world over the climate cliff. The sham must end”   2. Plans must be detailed and concrete   Mr. Guterres said that net-zero pledges should be accompanied by a plan for how the transition is being made. “Management must be accountable for delivering on these pledges. This means publicly advocating for decisive climate action and disclosing all lobbying activity,” he said, adding that the absence of standards, regulations and rigor in voluntary carbon market credits is deeply concerning.   Also, the pledges must detail how the transition will address the needs of workers in fossil fuel industries and sectors affected by the renewable energy transition.   The report also provides clarity and details on what businesses, financial institutions, and sub-national authorities need to do to phase out coal, oil and gas.   3. The promises must be accountable and transparent   The Secretary-General called on all net-zero voluntary initiatives to accelerate efforts to standardize progress reports, in an open format and via public platforms that feed the UN Climate Change’s Global Climate Action Portal.   “We must work together to fill gaps from the lack of universally recognized credible third-party authorities – and we must strengthen mechanisms positioned to conduct this verification and accountability process,” he explained.   4. Voluntary initiatives need to become a new normal   Finally, the UN chief said that governments need to ensure that the now voluntary initiatives become a “new normal”.   “I urge all government leaders to provide non-State entities with a level playing field to transition to a just, net-zero future. Solving the climate crisis requires strong political leadership,” he underscored, reiterating that developed countries also need to accelerate their decarbonization and lead by example.   Secretary-General António Guterres at the launched of the Expert Group on Net-Zero Commitments. On the left is Catherine McKenna, chair of the group.   The report comes in a year in which the world has been plagued by an energy crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as seemingly nonstop climate impacts like the unprecedented flooding in Pakistan and crippling drought in the US.   Currently over 80 per cent of global emissions are covered by net-zero pledges.   “Right now, the planet cannot afford delays, excuses, or more greenwashing,” said former Canadian Minister Catherine Mckenna, chairman of the High-Level Expert Group. She explained that in such a crucial time, making net-zero pledges is about cutting emissions, not corners.   Ms. Mckenna congratulated some actors that are making strides, such as companies investing in innovation, investors moving their money from dirty to clean, and cities changing their energy grid to renewables.   “But the bad news is that too many of the net-zero pledges are... little more than empty slogans and hype,” she argued. “Why is greenwashing so bad? In part, because the stakes are so high. It’s not just advertising, bogus net-zero claims drive up the cost that ultimately everyone would pay. Including people not in this room, through huge impact, climate migration and their very lives”.   http://news.un.org/en/story/2022/11/1130317 http://climatetrace.org/news/more-than-70000-of-the-highest-emitting-greenhouse-gas http://climateactiontracker.org/publications/global-reaction-to-energy-crisis-risks-zero-carbon-transition/ http://climateactiontracker.org/publications/massive-gas-expansion-risks-overtaking-positive-climate-policies/ http://www.globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/fossil-gas/636-fossil-fuel-lobbyists-granted-access-cop27/ http://www.carbonbrief.org/new-fossil-fuels-incompatible-with-1-5c-goal-comprehensive-analysis-finds/ http://www.pik-potsdam.de/en/news/latest-news/coal-exit-can-happen-only-with-stronger-policies-2013-and-with-china http://www.iccr.org/shareholders-file-multiple-proposals-us-banks-seeking-advance-climate-forward-lending-policies http://www.urgewald.org/en/medien/ngos-release-2022-global-oil-gas-exit-list-industry-willing-sacrifice-livable-planet http://www.icij.org/investigations/deforestation-inc/auditors-green-labels-sustainability-environmental-harm/ http://www.icij.org/investigations/deforestation-inc/ http://fossilfueltreaty.org/   Sep. 2022   Decarbonising the energy system will save trillions - Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford   Transitioning to a decarbonised energy system by around 2050 is expected to save the world at least $12 trillion compared to continuing our current levels of fossil fuel use.   For decades, scientists have called for a transition to clean energy to prevent the worst impacts of climate change but fears that such a transition would be costly and harm the economy have held back progress. However, a study from the Oxford Martin Programme on the Post-Carbon Transition published in Joule shows the reverse: an ambitious, decisive transition to green energy technologies such as solar, wind, and batteries, will likely save the world significant sums of money.   The research shows a win-win-win scenario, in which a transition to nearly 100% clean energy by 2050 results in lower energy system costs than a fossil fuel system, while providing more energy to the global economy, and expanding energy access to more people around the world.   This result is based purely on the economics of different energy technologies, even without accounting for the costs of climate damages and climate adaptation that would be avoided by such an energy transition.   Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the costs of fossil energy have skyrocketed, causing inflation around the world. This study, conducted before the current crisis, takes account of such fluctuations using over a century’s worth of fossil fuel price data. The current energy crisis underscores the study’s findings and demonstrates the risks of continuing to rely on expensive, insecure, fossil fuels.   The research confirms that the response to the crisis should include accelerating the transition to low cost, clean energy as soon as possible, as this will bring benefits both for the economy and the planet.   "There is a pervasive misconception that switching to clean, green energy will be painful, costly and mean sacrifices for us all – but that’s just wrong," says Professor Doyne Farmer.   "Renewable costs have been trending down for decades. They are already cheaper than fossil fuels in many situations, and our research shows that they will become cheaper than fossil fuels across almost all applications in the years to come. And if we accelerate the transition, they will become cheaper faster. Completely replacing fossil fuels with clean energy by around 2050 will save us trillions."   For decades, standard models got clean energy costs consistently wrong. The researchers analysed thousands of transition cost scenarios produced by major energy models and found that the real cost of solar energy dropped twice as fast as the most ambitious projections in these models. Over 20 years all of these models consistently overestimated the future costs of key clean energy technologies versus reality.   The Oxford team used a different approach, developing a ‘probabilistic model’ to estimate the costs of possible future energy systems more accurately based on past data. Probabilistic models are used widely throughout industry and research to estimate the likelihood of future events.   In prior work, the Oxford team showed it could ‘get the odds right’ in its probabilistic forecasts of energy technology costs. It tested the forecasting method against decades of historical data for 50 different technologies, using a technique called backtesting, which is routinely used in the financial industry.   The data used in this study includes 45 years of solar energy costs, 37 years of wind energy costs and 25 years for battery storage. Using probabilistic models, this study shows that the probability of further cost reductions in key green energy technologies is now so high that our best bet is to push ahead rapidly with the energy transition.   A common objection to scenarios for a rapid transition to net-zero carbon is the need for large amounts of energy storage to handle intermittent renewables. The study showed that the costs for key storage technologies, such as batteries and hydrogen electrolysis, are also likely to fall dramatically. Meanwhile, the costs of nuclear have consistently increased over the last five decades, making it highly unlikely to be cost competitive with plunging renewable and storage costs.   The study’s ‘Fast Transition’ scenario shows a realistic future of a near fossil-free energy system by 2050, providing 55% more energy services globally than today, with large amounts of wind, solar, batteries, electric vehicles, and clean fuels such as green hydrogen (made from renewable electricity).   Such a net-zero carbon future is not only technically feasible, but the research shows it is expected to cost the world $12 trillion less than continuing with the polluting fossil fuel-based system we have today.   Lead author Dr Rupert Way said, "Past models predicting high costs for transitioning to zero carbon energy have deterred companies from investing and made governments nervous about setting policies that will accelerate the green transition and cut reliance on fossil fuels. But past models have overestimated key green technology costs again and again, leaving modellers to play catch up as real world costs plunged over the last decade.   Only a few years ago, net zero by 2050 was believed to be so expensive that it was barely considered credible, yet now even the most pessimistic models concede that it’s entirely within reach. Our research goes further and shows that scaling up key green technologies is likely to drive their costs down so far that overall they generate net cost savings, and the faster we go, the more we will save. Accelerating the transition to renewable energy is now the best bet not just for the planet, but for energy costs too."   Professor Farmer adds, "The world is facing a simultaneous inflation crisis, national security crisis, and climate crisis, all caused by our dependence on high cost, insecure, polluting, fossil fuels with volatile prices. This study shows that ambitious policies to dramatically accelerate the transition to a clean energy future as quickly as possible are not only urgently needed for climate reasons, but can save the world trillions in future energy costs, giving us a cleaner, cheaper, more energy secure future."   http://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/news/decarbonise-energy-to-save-trillions/   July 2022   Lack of progress on loss and damage endangers international climate cooperation, CAN International, Christian Aid, agencies   It is a long way from Ighembe in northern Malawi to the Bonn negotiating rooms. The members of the local rice growers' cooperative have not heard of the UNFCCC. But they do know that the climate is changing around them, in ways that make it increasingly hard to sustain a living.   In January, Cyclone Ana hit three of the world's poorest nations: Madagascar, Mozambique, and Malawi. To date, it was the world's second deadliest weather event of 2022. Trees were toppled, roofs were ripped off buildings, and massive flash floods washed away roads and bridges. This is what the climate crisis looks like.   But there is a huge disconnect between pace at the global negotiations and the urgency of climate action needed now. Specifically, funding for efforts by communities on the frontline of the crisis to withstand climate shocks is lagging far behind the growing scale of need.   At the recent Bonn climate talks, the poorest countries made impassioned calls to put 'loss and damage' on the agenda, recognise the 'polluter pays' principle, and compensate climate-affected communities for the fallout from the crisis.   Yet efforts to establish a Finance Facility were swept aside, with no agreement on how to advance this agenda at the UN climate talks in November, at COP27.   Loss and damage – those irreversible and uninsurable climate impacts beyond what can be adapted to by communities and countries - is not a future threat.   Between 2010 and 2020 climate and weather-related disasters carried an average annual cost of $170 billion per year – roughly equivalent to global aid spending. Increasingly frequent and severe floods, storms, and droughts are destroying agricultural land, homes, schools, hospitals, and roads. Rising sea levels threaten the assets of millions of people.   Plenty of critics, in civil society and among governments in climate-vulnerable countries, believe that the big carbon-emitting countries are actively seeking to obstruct progress on loss and damage, for fear of signing an open cheque. Yet while governments haggle, those people who did the least to cause the climate crisis are trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty and debt.   The ultimate test of climate talks will be whether they protect current and future generations from the worst effects of the crisis and keep the world within the 1.5 degree limits agreed at Paris in 2015.   For that to happen, fairness has to be the guiding principle. In a new report Christian Aid, together with civil society partners, has set out what an equitable solution to loss and damage would entail, and its benefits.   Acting now on loss and damage will protect the global economy and preserve precious development gains. It will also be a lot less costly to rich countries than passing the buck and playing for time.   Conversely, failure to act will erode the poorest countries' trust in the Paris Climate agreement will be eroded – something that is already a scarce commodity.   If the official UN process is seen to be failing to deliver, climate legal action will increasingly take its place. Litigation has more than doubled since 2015, with Small Island States using the courts to hold historical polluters accountable.   By providing new and additional loss and damage funds at the necessary scale, developed countries can instead choose to reconcile different interests, and rebuild trust. New payment mechanisms must also be set up for the fossil fuel industry to pay its fair share of the loss and damage they have knowingly caused.   There are countless villages like Ighembe across the world, where the human suffering caused by the climate crisis is deepening and widening. The fact that this suffering is greatest among people who've done least to contribute to the problem is an injustice.   It is time that the richest countries, their wealth built on greenhouse gas emissions, recognise their role in tackling this injustice. Without it, the future of international cooperation on climate change is at risk.   * Author: Patrick Watt is chief executive at Christian Aid: http://tmsnrt.rs/3uRPmAO   * Report: Loss and Damage Finance Facility – Why and How - prepared by the following cooperating organisations: CAN International, Christian Aid; Heinrich Boll Stiftung (Washington, DC); Practical Action & Stamp Out Poverty:   http://climatenetwork.org/resource/executive-summary-loss-and-damage-finance-facility-why-and-how/ http://climatenetwork.org/2022/09/06/over-400-organisations-demand-that-loss-and-damage-is-on-the-agenda-for-cop27/ http://www.oxfam.org/en/research/hunger-heating-world http://www.oxfam.org/en/research/footing-bill-fair-finance-loss-and-damage-era-escalating-climate-impacts http://www.lossanddamagecollaboration.org/pages/finance-for-loss-and-damage-from-climate-change-must-be-ensured-soon http://ldyouth.org/2022/10/25/youth-demands-for-the-conference-of-parties-27-cop27/   http://www.iied.org/tackling-loss-damage-countries-vulnerable-effect-climate-crisis-improving-evidence-co-generating http://www.iied.org/addressing-loss-damage-actions-respond-recover-reduce-risk http://bit.ly/3RyXQVM http://blog.ucsusa.org/rachel-cleetus/its-past-time-for-rich-countries-like-the-us-to-pay-up-for-climate-loss-and-damage/ http://www.gi-escr.org/latest-news/gi-escr-submits-report-to-the-un-special-rapporteur-on-climate-change http://www.openglobalrights.org/transforming-climate-action-for-people-and-the-planet/ http://actionaid.org/news/2022/pakistan-floods-tens-millions-affected-blink-eye
	Floods, droughts, heatwaves, extreme storms and wildfires are going from bad to worse by UN News, WMO, agencies   Sep. 2022 (UNEP, agencies)   Climate science is clear: we are heading in the wrong direction, according to a new multi-agency report coordinated by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), which highlights the huge gap between aspirations and reality. Without much more ambitious action, the physical and socioeconomic impacts of climate change will be increasingly devastating, it warns.   The report, United in Science, shows that greenhouse gas concentrations continue to rise to record highs. Fossil fuel emission rates are now above pre-pandemic levels after a temporary drop due to lockdowns. The ambition of emissions reduction pledges for 2030 needs to be seven times higher to be in line with the 1.5 °C goal of the Paris Agreement.   The past seven years were the warmest on record. There is a 48% chance that, during at least one year in the next 5 years, the annual mean temperature will temporarily be 1.5°C higher than 1850-1900 average. As global warming increases, “tipping points” in the climate system can not be ruled out.   Cities that host billions of people and are responsible for up to 70% of human-caused emissions will face increasing socio-economic impacts. The most vulnerable populations will suffer most, says the report which gives examples of extreme weather in different parts of the world this year.   “Floods, droughts, heatwaves, extreme storms and wildfires are going from bad to worse, breaking records with alarming frequency. Heatwaves in Europe. Colossal floods in Pakistan. Prolonged and severe droughts in China, the Horn of Africa and the United States. There is nothing natural about the new scale of these disasters. They are the price of humanity’s fossil fuel addiction,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres.   “This year’s United in Science report shows climate impacts heading into uncharted territory of destruction. Yet each year we double-down on this fossil fuel addiction, even as the symptoms get rapidly worse,” Mr Guterres said.   “Climate science is increasingly able to show that many of the extreme weather events that we are experiencing have become more likely and more intense due to human-induced climate change. We have seen this repeatedly this year, with tragic effect. It is more important than ever that we scale up action,” said WMO Secretary-General Prof. Petteri Taalas.   United in Science provides an overview of the most recent science related to climate change, its impacts and responses. The science is clear – urgent action is needed to mitigate emissions and adapt to the changing climate, says the report.   It includes input from WMO (and its Global Atmosphere Watch and World Weather Research Programmes); the UN Environment Programme, the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, the World Climate Research Programme, Global Carbon Project; UK Met Office, and the Urban Climate Change Research Network. It includes relevant headline statements from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Sixth Assessment Report.   http://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/united-science-we-are-heading-wrong-direction http://www.undrr.org/news/united-science-2022-we-are-heading-wrong-direction   Sep. 2022   Record-high greenhouse gases, sea levels in 2021. (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration)   Greenhouse gas concentrations, global sea levels and ocean heat content reached record highs in 2021, according to the 32nd annual State of the Climate report.   The international annual review of the world’s climate, led by scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information and published by the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society offsite link (AMS), is based on contributions from more than 530 scientists in over 60 countries. It provides the most comprehensive update on Earth’s climate indicators, notable weather events and other data collected by environmental monitoring stations and instruments located on land, water, ice and in space.   "The data presented in this report are clear — we continue to see more compelling scientific evidence that climate change has global impacts and shows no sign of slowing,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad. “With many communities hit with 1,000-year floods, exceptional drought and historic heat this year, it shows that the climate crisis is not a future threat but something we must address today."   Notable findings from the international report include:   Earth’s greenhouse gases were the highest on record. The major atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations — carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide — each rose once again to new record highs during 2021. The global annual average atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was 414.7 parts per million (ppm). This was 2.3 ppm greater than 2020 amounts and was the highest measured in the modern observational records as well as the highest in at least the last million years based on paleoclimatic records.   The annual average atmospheric methane concentration was also the highest on record, and the annual increase of 18 parts per billion (ppb) was the highest since measurements began.   Earth’s warming trend continued. A range of scientific analyses indicate that annual global surface temperatures were 0.38 - 0.50 degrees F (0.21-0.28 of a degree C) above the 1991 -2020 average. This places 2021 among the six warmest years since records began in the mid to late 1800s. The last seven years (2015–2021) were the seven warmest years on record.   Ocean heat and global sea level were the highest on record. The ocean sequesters the vast majority of the excess energy trapped in the Earth's system by greenhouse gases and other factors; estimated at more than 90% over the past half-century. Global ocean heat content, measured from the ocean’s surface to a depth of more than 6,000 feet, continued to increase and reached new record highs in 2021. For the 10th consecutive year, global average sea level rose to a new record high.   http://www.noaa.gov/news-release/bams-report-record-high-greenhouse-gases-sea-levels-in-2021   Sep. 2022   How the climate crisis is fuelling hunger in an already hungry world. (Oxfam International)   Climate change is deepening hunger in 10 of the world's worst climate hotspots: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Guatemala, Haiti, Kenya, Madagascar, Niger, Somalia and Zimbabwe. These countries – which had the highest number of UN appeals driven by extreme weather events – have repeatedly been battered by extreme weather over the last two decades.   Today, 48 million people across those countries suffer acute hunger (up from 21 million in 2016), and 18 million people of them are on the brink of starvation.   For millions of people already pummeled down by ongoing conflict, widening inequalities, and economic crises, repeated climate shocks are becoming a backbreaker. The onslaught of climate disasters is now outpacing poor people’s ability to cope, pushing them deeper into severe hunger.   Meanwhile, as humanity faces this existential crisis, the biggest polluting countries continue to make extraordinary wealth: the oil and gas industry has amassed $2.8 billion per day in profits for each of the last 50 years. Less than 18 days of those profits would cover the entire $48.82 billion UN humanitarian appeal for 2022.   Oxfam is calling for rich polluting nations to immediately inject lifesaving funds to meet the UN appeal. To stop the next climate crisis, they must also drastically cut their emissions, guarantee adequate climate financing to help poor people adapt, and above all compensate low-income countries impacted by the climate crisis:   http://www.oxfam.org/en/research/hunger-heating-world Visit the related web page
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