UN climate science report set to highlight how slow response to climate crisis risks catastrophic consequences

The approval session begins for the new climate science report from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The report will bring together current scientific research, with leading scientists and governments set to agree on a summary that demonstrates the devastating reality and risks posed by the climate crisis, the many solutions available, and the ways in which the world must respond.

The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) Synthesis Report summary for policymakers will be discussed line-by-line by governments at the week-long approval session in Switzerland.

Dr. Stephanie Roe, WWF Global Climate and Energy Lead Scientist and Lead Author on the IPCC Working Group III report on mitigation said:

“Distilling more than 10,000 pages of climate science from the three Working Groups and three Special Reports, the IPCC Synthesis Report will present the most integrated and accessible assessment of climate change drivers, impacts, and mitigation and adaptation solutions in a decade. The evidence shows we are not yet doing enough to respond to this crisis. With current emissions still at their highest level in human history, we are way off course, and the window to limit warming to 1.5ºC is rapidly closing. Science also clearly shows that we have the solutions within our grasp. In some cases, we have started to implement these solutions, with various countries already achieving sustained emissions reductions, but action is not yet at the scale or speed we need. The sooner and more decisively we act, the sooner people and nature can reap the benefits of a cleaner, safer, and more stable future.”

IPCC reports are influential as they are used by policymakers and governments to inform their actions, shape UN climate change negotiations, and affect public opinion.

Findings from previous IPCC Working Group reports from this assessment cycle, that will be considered for inclusion in this Synthesis Report, warned that our climate was in ‘code red’ with CO2 concentration at its highest level in two million years and sea level rise at its fastest rate in 3000 years. The Working Group reports also showed that the current 1.1°C of warming has already caused dangerous disruption to nature and human well-being across the world, with many climate impacts worse than predicted in the last IPCC synthesis report in 2014.

The report is also set to highlight an alarming ambition gap. Working Group III findings revealed that despite some positive policy initiatives, greenhouse gas emissions continued to climb to the highest levels in human history and that we are way off track to limit warming to below catastrophic levels. Current policy and financial pledges to 2030 make it impossible to limit warming to 1.5°C.

While the UN report will not prescribe the exact policy pathway countries should take to limit warming, WWF hopes it will enhance the scientific basis for climate action and help spur governments to implement immediate measures to phase out fossil fuels, slash emissions across all sectors, and to restore nature – climate’s secret ally.

Dr Stephen Cornelius, WWF Global Deputy Lead for Climate and Energy, said: “Leaders must heed the science and act immediately with the pace and scale necessary to decarbonize our economies in time. The clock is ticking and we are running out of time, and no countries are yet on track for a 1.5ºC pathway. An accelerated phase-out of fossil fuels is needed to limit global warming to below 1.5oC and avoid the worst climate change risks. Nature is our secret ally in the fight against climate change. Natural systems have absorbed 54% of human-related carbon dioxide emissions over the past decade and have slowed global warming and helped protect humanity from much more severe climate change risks. We can’t hope to limit warming to 1.5°C, adapt to climate change and save lives and livelihoods, unless we also act urgently to safeguard and restore nature. Nature is a non-negotiable part of the solution to the climate crisis.”