Greenland melt, ocean heatwaves, AMOC slowing, polar bears starving - Arctic developments so far in 2024 might give you the Climate Blues. Is there light on the horizon?
Tag: climate emergency
Why Dubai’s COP28 was bad news for the world’s ice and all those whose future depends on it
I went to Dubai for the UN Climate Conference COP28 with mixed feelings. On the one hand, the controversy over the location and the President, head of a giant fossil fuel concern, made me somewhat sceptical. On the other, I was driven by the awareness that this was a kind of last chance, with the …
COP28 in oil-rich Dubai – Can states agree action to protect the cryosphere and limit devastating global impacts?
There has never been a more pressing need for the world to unite and take urgent, radical action to halt emissions, to avoid further changes to the frozen parts of the Earth with catastrophic consequences for people all round the globe.
“Greenland ice safe after all”? “Antarctic ice melt no longer stoppable”? Don’t be fooled – we can and we must limit temperature rise to 1.5°C
“It's too late to stop Antarctic ice melt.” But “the Greenland ice sheet might be more resistant to warming than we thought”, according to various recent studies. So should we stop worrying? Or give up on climate action? As we speed towards this year's UN Climate Conference COP28, to be held in – of all places - oil-rich Dubai, while wars in the Middle East and in Ukraine are distracting attention from the planet-threatening climate crisis, what we need is not complacency or resignation but a heightened sense of urgency.
COP28 Countdown: Bonn UN climate talks try to smooth rocky path to Dubai
As temperatures spike, forests burn, oceans warm, ice melts in the Arctic, Antarctic and on the world's highest mountains, negotiators at the UN climate talks in Bonn, Germany are wrangling over documents to prepare for COP28 in oil-land Dubai at the end of the year. That meeting will tackle the "Global Stocktake" of climate efforts - and shortcomings.
A Sign of the TIME(s)? Why ice researchers count among the world’s most influential people
Climate change is impacting the frozen regions of our planet faster and more seriously than expected. The naming of two ice scientists as amongst the world's most influential people shows growing recognition of the key role played by the cryosphere and the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to protect it.
Earth’s temperature rises as geopolitical climate cools
It's now one year since Russia invaded Ukraine. There’s no sign of any end to the conflict. And we are not looking at a regional dispute. This war has become a major clash between systems, with repercussions for the whole planet. Putin’s invasion has plunged us into a time of multiple crises – war, an …
Continue reading Earth’s temperature rises as geopolitical climate cools
2 degrees, 2.5, 3 degrees, 4 – 2023 yet another “last chance” for the climate?
The Arctic and the rest of the planet are heating up rapidly. Emissions are at a record high and fossil fuels in demand against the background of the energy crisis through Russia's war on Ukraine. Can 2023 bring a decisive shift in climate action?
Warmer, wetter, darker: What’s happening to the “frozen North”?
2022 has seen exceptional warmth and ice melt in the Arctic, with consequences for the whole planet. But against the background of Russia's war on Ukraine, climate action has stalled. It's high time to cut emissions and speed up the energy transition.
Wildfires and ice: heatwaves put spotlight on the Arctic
Rarely have I heard the Arctic being mentioned so often in the media as in this hottest of summers. I wish the reason was a good one. Alas. The warming Arctic plays a key role in the development of the heat-waves currently disrupting life and livelihoods around the globe.
