Climate Change is the gradual increase of global average temperatures.

It is accepted by governments and scientists alike that exceeding 2° C is dangerous.

We're already at 1.2° C now in 2016, with enough CO₂ in the air to reach ~1.8° C.

The problem, however, is not the temperature; it is the huge consequences of this temperature rise to
  • the stability of our climate (e.g storms, droughts, ocean currents),
  • the impact on melting polar and glacial ice (rising sea-levels),
  • the impact on acidifying oceans (killing plankton, corals, shellfish and fish), and
  • the irreversible releases of methane hydrates from the arctic.

The cause is our lifestyle, mainly our appetite for burning coal, oil and gas.  Also deforestation, agriculture systems, and diet play a role.

Getting rid of coal now, oil over the next 5-15 years, and gas over 15 -50 years is the only way to stop these disastrous consequences from getting out of hand.

At the same time many other changes (many improvements) are also needed. Many  blueprints on what to do and how to do it exist already.

What consequences?

We can see the impact of the changing climate now in increased severity of storms, floods, droughts.

But this is nothing compared to what will happen this century already:
  • Global water shortages from droughts, floods and reduced glacier cover.
  • Oceans will die from consequences of acidification (already started).
  • 2 metre sealevel rise, part cause of ~2 billion people displaced/refugees.
  • Global food shortages from agricultural land loss and crop failures.

Why are we not acting?

Not enough political will. There are no technical issues. (WEO report, IEA)

Politicians, who make rules about pollution, power usage and taxes, collectively do too little.

Why they do is mostly down to who the government listens to (as explained in the cartoon).

Those who know the facts would stand up and stop this needless madness of carbon addiction and ensuing global destruction of truly biblical proportions.

Changing from oil to renewables is like changing from horses to steam, from steam to petrol, from CFC's to alternatives, from whale oil to petroleum: it's not some unprecedented recipe for disaster.

If done well it actually improves everything, including our health.

When do we need to act?

Now is a good time.

The longer we wait, the shorter time we have before the point of no return.

Down to zero emissions by 2050 is a reasonable target to achieve, and gives us a reasonable chance to prevent escalation.

A large part of the problem lies with the oil and other carbon related industries-: they influence governments. Oil industry prognoses suggest a doubling of emissions by 2040, where the UN achievable target suggests emissions go down to zero by 2070. It is
unprecedented that industry "predicts" something this terminally opposite to the general political concensus, and it can do this only because they control political power, and because we let it happen.