CLIMA V

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WHAT IS THE CLIMATE CHANGE?

Climate change refers to long-term changes in temperatures and weather patterns. These
changes may be natural, due to variations in solar activity or large volcanic eruptions. But
since the 19th century, human activities have been the main driver of climate change, mainly
due to the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.
Burning fossil fuels generates greenhouse gas emissions that act like a blanket enveloping the
Earth, trapping the sun's heat and raising temperatures.

WE ARE RESPONSIBLE?

Climate scientists have shown that people are responsible for

global warming over the past 200 years. Human activities generate greenhouse gases that raise
the planet's temperature at the fastest rate in the last 2,000 years.
The Earth's average temperature is now 1.1°C higher than it was at the end of the 19th century,
before the industrial revolution, and higher in absolute terms than in the last 100,000 years.
The last decade (2011-2020) was the warmest on record. Along those lines, each of the last
four decades has been warmer than any other decade since 1850.

SOME SOLUTIONS?

Switching energy systems from fossil fuels to renewable energy, such as solar and wind, will
reduce emissions that cause climate change. But we have to start right now. Although a
growing coalition of countries commit to reaching zero emissions by 2050, around half of the
emissions cuts must occur before 2030 to keep warming below 1.5°C. This achievement
requires large reductions in the use of coal, oil and gas. To avoid catastrophic climate
consequences, by 2050, we must reduce the extraction of current confirmed fossil fuel
reserves by more than two thirds.