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By many accounts, climate change is already driving human migration, but fresh thinking about the consequences of increasingly stringent borders, the intervening effects of global and local policy and how best to characterize human adaptive responses is needed to properly understand whether a crisis is on the horizon.
The broad-scale impacts and mechanisms of physical climate change are scientifically well-understood, but specific estimates of these impacts are associated with uncertainty that is challenging to communicate. How scientists communicate uncertainty affects public trust and acceptance of the research.
The latest IPCC report highlights that a change in diets for richer nations, and smarter land use, could ensure food security and mitigation of potential climate impacts.
Forests play an important role in carbon storage and climate regulation, as well as supporting biodiversity. Restoration of lost and degraded areas is firmly back on the agenda with a recent UN announcement.
Parties to the Paris Agreement must increase their ambition, but stringent climate policy has the potential to put sustainable development at risk. A collaborative effort is underway to identify potential trade-offs and to strengthen synergies between climate action and sustainable development.
New voices in the climate movement appear keenly aware that they face well-funded, long-entrenched interests inhibiting sensible climate change policy. Getting a grip on when and how lobbying impacts policy is key to translating calls for ‘climate action’ into feasible policies.
The unexpected swell of action, sparked by a Swedish teenager, has put climate change back on the political radar. With time on their side, youth will experience longer term climate change impacts more than those in decision making positions, meaning they want a say in their future.
Men and women differ in their perceptions of environmental risk, vulnerability to climate change impacts and adaptation behaviour. Effective policies must address the diversity of gender roles and identities, and the underlying drivers of inequality.
Food links human health with that of our environment. Changes to eating habits are urgently needed if we are to achieve the Paris Agreement goals — changes that will also address the leading causes of ill health in the world today.
Global emissions rose in 2018 with the USA increasing its emissions after three years of decline. Understanding the contributing factors is not enough — action at all scales is needed.
