Ben See (@ClimateBen): BREAKING: UN Secretary General says many of Earth's ecosystems "are at the point of no return NOW" 🧵
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 1. Economic growth is taking us to 1.6-2.4°C by 2050.
"places where people live and work may cease to exist.. ecosystems and species that we've all grown up with and that are central to our cultures and inform our languages may disappear"
See video clip:https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-60525591
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 2. Ecosystem collapse is caused by so many elements of today's destructive growth economy. It's not just abrupt climate change.
We can act to protect species and everybody, but it will take profound system change.
We must focus on this.
Media?
Silent. https://twitter.com/ClimateBen/status/1476268007290773510?s=20&t=k43A1Q1imTmOhrUYAr5jFQ
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 3. Economic growth is taking us deeper and deeper into mass extinction. Deforestation, logging, road-building, plastic & chemical & light & noise pollution, pesticides, mining, deep sea trawling, industrial agriculture, construction,...
Not just climate: https://twitter.com/ClimateBen/status/1498781356213612544?s=20&t=aSSt2oac79XUMvz6OreQ0A
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 4. We must re-organise the way we live. We must rethink energy.
Media systems are not providing/supporting an adequate discourse around how we can best act on this predicament. Profound change, not 'green' growth and 100s of millions of electric cars.. https://twitter.com/ClimateBen/status/1498795819205603334?s=20&t=aSSt2oac79XUMvz6OreQ0A
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 🧵icymi
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: any further delay in concerted global action will miss a brief and rapidly closing window to secure a liveable future
International Energy Agency: CO2 emissions are set to hit record levels in 2023 and there's no peak in sight
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 1. 'global emissions are set to increase almost 14 per cent over the current decade. That spells catastrophe'
Economic growth is a root problem, and yet the UN net zero 2050 plan is based on more growth. https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/02/1112852
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 2. Corporations and governments are setting up new fossil fuel production.
The US and Canada amongst others are the big oil and gas producers of the 2020s.
We can and must take action to protect everyone and all species. But we'll have to face reality. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/20/co2-emissions-will-hit-record-levels-in-2023-iea-says.html
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 3. 'we scientists decided to construct ever more elaborate fantasy worlds in which we would be safe. The price to pay for our cowardice: having to keep our mouths shut about the ever growing absurdity of the required planetary-scale carbon dioxide removal' https://theconversation.com/climate-scientists-concept-of-net-zero-is-a-dangerous-trap-157368
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 4. 'global emissions must peak...within the next few years.'
But this only gives a slim, theoretical chance.
1.75°C or even 2°C may be beyond us no matter what according to IPCC scientists' recent work.
We must act. We must face reality.
System change.https://theconversation.com/ipcc-report-global-emissions-must-peak-by-2025-to-keep-warming-at-1-5-c-we-need-deeds-not-words-165598
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 5. Scientists expect growth will take us to 1.7-1.8C by the 2030s/40s or soon after.
New IPCC report: at 1.7-1.8C 'half the human population could be exposed to periods of life-threatening climatic conditions arising from heat and humidity'
System change.https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-60525591
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 6. What happens if emissions do plummet? Can we avoid an aerosol shock? Methane would have to be dealt with. Would that be enough?
We can take action to protect everybody & all species but we're not even seeing the necessary discussions in media.
Thread:https://twitter.com/ClimateBen/status/1465675827333509126?s=20&t=l3jOjVCIophTZvrrnCP3tg https://twitter.com/ClimateBen/status/1498792116918669312/photo/1
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 7. 'Growthist assumptions predominate in much of it. Critiques of growthism are represented, which is an important step, but the discussion lacks specificity and does not capture many of the key points that have been established in the literature.' Thread:https://twitter.com/jasonhickel/status/1498332286688935949?s=20&t=l3jOjVCIophTZvrrnCP3tg
Ben See (@ClimateBen): 8. I personally suspect we've gone too far down the capitalism-colonialism-imperialism-extractivism-deforestation road to keep anything like today's industrial world going and expect decent survival for species. We need equity. Slow it down. Simplify. Organise profound change.