



Evolution of human activities in the world from 1979 to today. These indicators are linked at least in part to climate change. In graph (f), the annual loss of forest cover can be due to any reason (forest fire, harvest in tree plantations, conversion of forests to agricultural land, etc.). For graph (h), hydroelectricity and nuclear energy (missing) are shown in a separate graph. The rates shown in the tables are percentages of variation over the entire range of time series. Annual data are indicated in gray dots. The black lines are local regressions smoothed of trends. Credits: William J. Ripple, Christopher Wolf, Thomas M. Newsome, Phoebe Barnard, William R. Moomaw

A global coalition of scientists, including 11,000 signatories, believes that "indeterminate human suffering" is inevitable without drastic, deep and lasting changes in human activities that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Other factors related to climate change are also targeted." Despite 40 years of major global negotiations, we continued to act as if nothing had happened and we did not manage to cope with this crisis, " said William J. Ripple, co-director of coalition - alongside Christopher Wolf - and distinguished professor of ecology at the OSU College of Forestry. " Climate change has arrived and is accelerating faster than expected by many scientists."In an article published yesterday in the journal BioScience , the authors, as well as more than 11,000 scientific scientists from 153 countries, declare a climate emergency. They include graphs of adverse trends and vital signs to measure progress. They finally propose a set of effective mitigation measures.Scientists point to six areas in which humanity should take immediate action to slow the effects of global warming:. Implement massive conservation practices; replace fossil fuels with low-carbon renewable energies; leave the remaining stocks of fossil fuels in the soil; eliminate fossil fuel business subsidies; and impose carbon royalties high enough to limit the use of fossil fuels.. Rapidly reduce emissions of methane, soot, hydrofluorocarbons and other short-lived climate pollutants; This could reduce the short-term warming trend by more than 50% in the coming decades.. Restore and protect ecosystems such as forests, grasslands, peat bogs, wetlands and mangroves, and enable more of these ecosystems to reach their ecological potential for the sequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide. one of the main greenhouse gases.. Consume more plants and less animal products. The regime change would significantly reduce emissions of methane and other greenhouse gases and release agricultural land for the production of human food rather than feed. Reducing food waste is also crucial. Indeed, scientists say that at least a third of all food produced ends up in garbage.. Convert the current economy into a carbon-free economy to address human dependence on the biosphere and away from gross domestic product growth and the pursuit of wealth. Curb the exploitation of ecosystems to maintain the long-term sustainability of the biosphere.. Stabilize a global human population growing by more than 200,000 people per day, using approaches that ensure social and economic justice." Mitigating and adapting to climate change while respecting human diversity implies major transformations in the ways in which our global society operates and interacts with natural ecosystems, " the document says." We are encouraged by the recent worry. Government agencies make declarations of climatic urgency. Schoolchildren are hitting. The court cases for ecocide continue in the courts. Citizen movements are demanding change, and many countries, states and provinces, cities and businesses are responding. As a global coalition of scientists, we are ready to help policymakers in a just transition towards a sustainable and equitable future, "reads.The vital sign graphs in the document illustrate several key indicators and drivers of climate change over the last 40 years, since scientists from 50 countries gathered at the first World Climate Conference in Geneva in 1979.In recent decades, many other global assemblies have agreed that urgent action is essential, but greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase rapidly. Other worrying signs of human activities include the steady increase in meat production per capita, the loss of global forest cover and the number of air passengers.There are also encouraging signs, including a drop in the birth rate worldwide and a decrease in forest loss in the Brazilian Amazon, as well as an increase in wind and solar energy, but even these measures are tinged with worry. For example, the decline in the birth rate has slowed over the last 20 years and the rate of extinction of the Amazonian forest seems to be starting to increase again." Global surface temperature, ocean heat content, extreme weather and cost, sea level, ocean acidity, and US burned area are on the rise, " Ripple said. " Overall, the ice is rapidly disappearing, as evidenced by the decrease in the minimal summer Arctic ice pack, the ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica and the thickness of the glaciers. All these rapid changes underline the urgent need for action, "concludes Ripple