How much time is left before the onset of the climatic Apocalypse?

climate Change — the problem is more serious than previously thought.

I don't want to scare anyone gloomy predictions about our future, but think about what awaits us, not hurt. Today, almost every person on the planet aware of environmental issues, which every year becomes more and more. However, not everyone understands what a threat actually is a climate change. Maybe someone of you remembers the news that mankind is left 12 years to . According to some experts, we don't have and 18 months. In other words, we five minutes doomed. Is it all really so bad?

Apocalypse outside the window

Last week in the world famous newspaper The New Yorker published an article by Jonathan Franzen. Writer and journalist thinks that you should stop fooling around and accept the inevitable — we will not be able to stop climate change. According to Franzen, we should all focus on what good could be done by each of us now as a great bright future may never come.

Needless to say that the article Franzen stirred up the public. Renowned climate scientist Kate marvel, wrote a response article in no less an esteemed publication Scientific American, in which he argued in favor of the fact that there is still time and all is not lost. According to marvel, to give up, we just don't have the right. But which of them is right and why, not only Jonathan Franzen believes that we are doomed?

photo journalist Jonathan Fraser

To understand this, let's look at the report presented by the intergovernmental panel on climate change under the auspices of the United Nations (UN). According to the report, to maintain the global temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius in this century carbon dioxide emissions on the planet needs to be reduced by 45% by 2030. And this after only 11 years.

However, in 2017, one of the leading climatologists of the world Hans Joachim Shellnhuber, founder and now honorary Director of the Potsdam climate Institute, said that the deadline is not 2030. We need to significantly reduce the amount of harmful emissions into the atmosphere in 2020. And he is not far off. According to the scientist we are able after 18 months. To recover from the effects will be impossible.

What happens in the next 18 months?

Until the end of 2020 the government group of the UN should meet to discuss emergency response measures to combat climate change. Recall that in 2015 many world leaders signed the Paris agreement, under which all participating countries must significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

Today, experts agree that a decisive political steps to reduce emissions should be made before the end of next year. The first serious step should be the special climate summit convened by UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, which will be held in new York on September 23. Guterres made it clear that the summit should include representatives of only those countries that are able to make significant suggestions for improvement of their plans to reduce carbon emissions. Then followed a summit in Santiago, Chile.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg during his speech at Ted Talks in Stockholm

Similar steps taken by world leaders, give us all hope for a brighter future. After all, these decisions determine not only our future but the lives of all future generations. Also important is public opinion to this account — not so long ago Europe was swept by a series of meetings, which gave the Teens probably inspired by the climate activism of a young Greta Thunberg. In the end, some countries such as the UK, have already adopted a number of legislative measures aimed at reducing emissions.

Can I stop climate change?

However, despite the positive changes, no reason to worry we are still abound. The US intention to withdraw from the Paris agreement, the inaction of the leaders of Russia, China and Brazil are putting the future of the planet at risk. Today we have reached the point when any step of an individual state could be decisive. Obviously, not all world leaders know it.

Photo from the past in 2018 the UN summit on climate

We just need to hope that during the UN summit on 26 September, the UN Secretary General will be able to convince reluctant leaders to move their financial and geopolitical interests on the back burner. If we do not take significant action in the next 18 months, many experts are predicting our planet very bleak future.

Earlier this year a serious disturbance among the heads of States caused study in their natural habitat. The cause of death of animals are human actions. The IPBES report showed that in the coming decades may be lost up to a million species of animals.

Earth will be destroyed?

Hard to say. Therefore, the experts disagree. It seems to me that none of us should give up and with histhe parties must do everything in his power in the fight against climate change — not to spend wasted water and other resources, to make fewer purchases. It is our reckless consumption is the reason for the work of a huge number of factories that produce such a large number of emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere.

At the same time, I have to admit that at the moment, agree with the journalist of The New Yorker — most likely, not be able to prevent climate change. I will be very happy if someone can convince me.

What do you think, what will happen to our civilization in 20-30 years? Let's talk about it with the participants .