We’ve all probably heard the phrase “climate action” at some point in our lives. It’s the United Nations’s thirteenth sustainable development goal. But what exactly does it mean?
Climate action refers to efforts to combat climate change and its impacts. It’s generally divided into two main categories: mitigation and adaptation. Mitigation involves reducing greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. Adaptation includes actions taken to prepare for and manage the effects of climate change. Let’s take a deeper look into these two categories.
Mitigation
To mitigate the effects of climate change, we must target its sources, which are the greenhouse gasses emitted by human activities. Reducing the rate and severity of global warming and potentially reversing its progression requires slowing down or even eliminating excessive greenhouse gas emissions. So, how can we do this? There are many ways to achieve climate action mitigation. One example is switching to renewable energy. Reducing our dependence on fossil fuels as our main energy source will greatly lower emissions, helping to slow climate change and progress towards a more sustainable future. Another example of mitigation is focusing on reducing emissions from transportation. According to the EPA, as of 2022, transportation accounted for twenty-eight percent of total US greenhouse gas emissions, the largest portion out of any sector. Several approaches can help shrink this amount. One popular method is the use of electric vehicles (EVs). Instead of running on gasoline, EVs have the potential to significantly reduce emissions from transportation since using electricity doesn’t emit any greenhouse gases. Although current electricity generation produces emissions, as renewable energy sources become more prominent and efficient, electric vehicles may offer a path toward sustainable transportation. Mitigating climate change by focusing on transportation can also involve improving infrastructure and city development. Planning cities to be more compact, where people do not need to travel by car to reach residential areas, work, or other necessities, can greatly reduce transportation emissions. Investing in bike lanes, pedestrian-friendly roads, and public transportation are also vital infrastructural developments for reducing transportation emissions. Climate change mitigation is crucial in the long term, as slowing down climate change is essential for the survival of humanity and our planet.
Adaptation
Rather than trying to stop or slow down climate change, adaptation involves managing the risks of its effects. These effects can include sea level rise, severe storms, hotter temperatures, and more. While mitigating climate change to eliminate these impacts is crucial, climate change has already taken a toll on our planet, making adaptation inevitable. Adaptations include building sea walls to counter rising sea levels, planting trees to sequester carbon from the atmosphere, and preparing for extreme wildfire conditions or droughts. To adapt properly, it is crucial to understand all the effects of climate change and how they impact human populations and the environment.
Conclusion
Mitigation and adaptation are the essential categories of climate action that we must focus on to combat the global climate crisis we have created. Investing in one or the other is no longer enough, as temperatures have already risen and we have released too many greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Reaching a higher tipping point in global warming would be catastrophic. If we don’t take action now to prevent global temperatures from rising above 1.5 degrees Celsius, the planet will face a series of cascading tipping points, in which the effects will be irreversible, and we will witness the destruction of global systems, mass die-offs on both land and water and exacerbate the rate of global warming (Yale School of the Environment). To prevent this from happening, educate yourself and your community about climate action and become aware of your city’s and state’s climate action plan.
Works Cited
Environmental Protection Agency. (n.d.). EPA. https://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/fast-facts-transportation-greenhouse-gas-emissions#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20Inventory%20of,U.S.%20GHG%20emissions%20in%202022.
United Nations. (n.d.-a). What is climate change?. United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/what-is-climate-change
United Nations. (n.d.-b). What is climate change?. United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/what-is-climate-change
What is climate action?. What is Climate Action? | City of Norfolk, Virginia – Official Website. (n.d.). https://www.norfolk.gov/5228/What-is-Climate-Action
The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect nor represent the Earth Chronicles and its editorial board.
