Today, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its latest report ‘Climate Change 2021: the Physical Science Basis’ which, approved by 195 member governments of the IPCC, sets out the starkest climate warning yet. The report says that climate change is ‘widespread, rapid and intensifying’ and that without immediate, large-scale emissions reductions in the next few decades, we will surpass temperature rise of 1.5C or even 2C. The report has been hailed a ‘code red for humanity’, unequivocally claiming that human activity has now altered the Earth’s climate in every region and across the entire global climate system.
Responding to the report, Lisa Walker, CEO at Ecosphere+, said: “This IPCC report is a stark signal that we are simply not moving fast enough. Climate change is now on the brink of pushing us beyond critical tipping points, affecting ecosystems across the globe and resulting in devastating consequences for society and nature. We need to see this report for what it is: an urgent call for greater, bolder and faster climate action.”
Lisa Walker added: “With nature capable of delivering more than a third of the emissions reductions needed through 2030 to meet the Paris climate target, we have powerful natural climate solutions in our hands today which must now urgently scale. But this requires long-term finance, delivered within the framework of a robust, principled and transparent carbon market. With COP26 less than three months away, we have a small margin of time to put our money where our mouth is and ensure we are properly valuing the potential of nature to meet the twin challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss.”
Ecosphere+ works with clients from across sectors to build innovative pathways to net zero through financing nature. The collective impact of the Ecosphere+ carbon project portfolio has avoided more than 33 million tonnes of CO2 emissions to date, while protecting threatened ecosystems and empowering local and indigenous communities on the front lines of climate change.
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