Positive Climate Developments

To start the week on a good note, today we would like to focus on some positive developments that humanity has managed to achieve and will hopefully continue to do so in the coming years.

Ever since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, humanity is trying to cut down on carbon emissions to reduce global warming. The projections back then were not very assuring; compared to pre-industrial levels, they showed an increase in temperatures of about 3.5 degrees Celsius.

New Technologies – New Projections

The energy sector is the one that up to today has caused most emissions. Thanks to our advancing technology, the world has recently seen changes when it comes to the energy sector. This, in turn, has influenced updated projections for the future, which are now already showing some positive trends and minor reductions. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has carried out calculations that show this, taking into account current policies and the rise of renewable energy sources. The current studies show that by the end of 2100, global warming will reach still a 2.5 to 2.9 degrees Celsius increase. However, this shows already significant changes to previous studies before the Paris Agreement.

The following section explains the renewable energy sources that, according to the OECD, are responsible for the changes.

Wind, Solar and Electric Vehicles

The three technologies that have aided the reduction of carbon emissions are energy created by wind and solar power as well as electric vehicles. Comparing predictions from before 2015 with now, it becomes evident that back then no one could have imagined such an increase in photovoltaics, wind power and electric cars. Moreover, the IEA says that so-called clean energy is still on the rise and that states, nations and governments around the world are picking up the pace of its production.

This does not mean that our job is done for the next century – we still have a lot of work to do to further reduce emissions. The numbers have not yet reached the goal that we need to keep global warming under 1.5 degrees Celsius, but some positive news help reinforce what we are doing and keep hope up.