Cruel Summer

One of the most famous pop stars in the world started the UK leg of her world tour a couple of weeks back.? She arrived, naturally, via private jet, and recently threatened legal action against a social media star for publishing the CO2 emissions from said private jet travel.? ?

This week there is also a continuation of record temperatures in northern India where approx. 900 million people live.? Sunday marked the 35th consecutive day when New Delhi’s maximum temperature exceeded 40C.?

Parts of the US are currently covered by a(nother) heat dome or flooded.? Schools have been cancelled in the Philippines and Pakistan.? Temperatures are hitting record highs in parts of north and central China.? Aswan, in Egypt, hit a record high of 50.9 degrees.? Europe is boiling.? The Acropolis, in Greece, has been closed.? And hurricane season is only just beginning.

Here in the UK it’s been (until now) unseasonably cool with limited sunshine and incessant rain which adds to the general despondent national mood (or is that the impending election?). ?

Where’s this all heading??

Some facts:

1)????? Extreme weather events (i.e. outside the accepted averages) continue to happen with more and more frequency around the world.

2)????? Countries (and people) that have done the least, historically, to cause climate change are disproportionately being impacted by these changes.?

3)????? According to the WEF, climate finance doubled to $1.3 trillion?from 2021 to 2022, but needs to increase?by at least five-fold annually?to limit warming to below 1.5°C but the capital “isn’t available”.

4)??? Forbes proclaimed that the world has 2,781 billionaires who are collectively worth $14.2 trillion (up by $2 trillion year on year). ??

Again, where is this piece going??

It’s impossible to deny that the world’s climate is changing and at a pace that is constantly surprising scientists and disrupting lives.? If the world has so far warmed 1.1 C since pre-industrial times, what happens at 1.5 C (the magic number) or where realistically we are heading which is 2.3 C or above?? How do billions of people adapt to survive and thrive?

At a system level, at an organisation level and an individual level there needs to be greater accountability and much more urgency.? Misaligned national priorities, changing company priorities and individual ostrich behaviour means we are moving further and further away from being able to solve the climate emergency.?

The Brundtland definition of sustainability is very clear: we must “meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.

The greenlash we are seeing through election cycles is a direct result of getting this equation wrong.? Many folk believe that the needs of the present are not being met or have been stifled by green policies.? They would like to see a re-balancing to the time before we all became woke.? But this misses a fundamental part of the definition – “without compromising the ability of the future”.? Doubling down on fossil fuels today might meet the needs of the present but what about the needs of the future?

I recently attended a school production of 6-year-olds called “the Sweaty Yeti”.? It was about a Yeti that, er, starts sweating, and asks his friends (owl, fox and seal) to bring him snow from the poles to keep him cool.? Suspending belief on many levels, the messages to 6-year-olds were undeniably clear: use less energy (turn off lights when not needed); use less water (have a shower not a bath); think about the environment (stop using disposable plastics); etc.? The idea was to make 6-year-olds realise that actions have consequences and as the future stewards of the world to do their bit.

And that’s what this piece is about.? Not the politics of envy but about accountability.? Are we all really doing enough?? In election jargon are those with the broadest shoulders bearing the greatest responsibility?

If my sums are correct, between now and 2030 i.e. five years, if we just matched the increase in climate finance between 2021 and 2022 (recognising that more is needed) the world requires $6.5 trillion. That would still leave about $7.7 trillion (over half) to be shared amongst 2,781 billionaires. And by doing so we could protect 8 billion people. And the planet.?

I’m not advocating for 98% taxes or full nationalisation of wealth, not yet anyway, but I can’t help but be frustrated by the lack of available capital going towards climate finance.?

Governments obfuscate, companies renege, the 0.01% buy islands or bunkers or tickets to Mars, leaving 99.99% of the population stuck with the worst impacts of climate change for decades, nay centuries to come.? And, often, they did the least to cause it.

So, yes, do the little things.? Fly commercial instead of private (if that’s an actual choice you won’t be reading this but could consider not flying at all), turn off the lights, plant a tree, use a vote, change the system, etc.? Do it all and do it now. ?If the few aren’t going to make a change, the majority must.? If we’re teaching our children to do their bit, lets lead by example.

Things are going to get tougher.? If I was a betting man my money would be on a (totally avoidable) disorderly transition in the second part of this decade.

I hope I’m wrong.? Let’s not look back in years to come and wish for the “cool” summer of 2024.? ?

?

Ps in case you’re wondering why private jets have suddenly become my target, I am counting on average 6 per day over north London.? Surely there are other ways to get to concerts or matches?