Climate Change

The GHGs that are already in the atmosphere because of human activity will continue to warm the planet for decades to come. In other words, some level of continued climate change is inevitable, which means humanity is going to have to take action to adapt to a warming world. However, it is still possible--and necessary--to reduce the magnitude of climate change. A growing body of scientific research has clarified that climate change is already underway and some dangerous impacts have occurred. Avoiding much more severe impacts in the future requires large reductions in human-induced CO2 emissions in the coming decades. Consequently, many governments have committed to reduce their countries' emissions by between 50 and 85 percent below 2000 levels by 2050. Global emissions reductions on this scale will reduce the costs of damages and of adaptation, and will dramatically reduce the probability of catastrophic outcomes.The GHGs that are already in the atmosphere because of human activity will continue to warm the planet for decades to come. In other words, some level of continued climate change is inevitable, which means humanity is going to have to take action to adapt to a warming world. However, it is still possible--and necessary--to reduce the magnitude of climate change. A growing body of scientific research has clarified that climate change is already underway and some dangerous impacts have occurred. Avoiding much more severe impacts in the future requires large reductions in human-induced CO2 emissions in the coming decades. Consequently, many governments have committed to reduce their countries' emissions by between 50 and 85 percent below 2000 levels by 2050. Global emissions reductions on this scale will reduce the costs of damages and of adaptation, and will dramatically reduce the probability of catastrophic outcomes.