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There are multiple, feasible and effective options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to human-induced climate change, and they are available now, said scientists in the latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released on Monday.
“Mainstreaming effective and equitable climate action will not only reduce losses and damages for nature and people, it will also provide wider benefits,” said IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee.
Lee added, “This Synthesis Report underscores the urgency of taking more ambitious action and shows that, if we act now, we can still secure a livable sustainable future for all.”
Saleemul Huq, director of International Centre for Climate Change and Development, said, “The IPCC synthesis report is the final report of the sixth assessment cycle of the IPCC. This report is extremely important as it is the first IPCC report in the new era of Loss and Damage from impacts of human-induced climate change.”
Dr Anjal Prakash, lead author of IPCC AR6 report and also research director at Bharti Institute of Public Policy of Indian School of Business, said, “This report has highlighted the severity of the climate crisis and its impact on the global population, particularly Bangladesh, a country highly vulnerable to climate change.”
“Climate justice is crucial because those who have contributed least to climate change are being disproportionately affected,” said Aditi Mukherji, one of the 93 authors of this Synthesis Report.
“Almost half of the world’s population lives in regions that are highly vulnerable to climate change. In the last decade, deaths from floods, droughts and storms were 15 times higher in highly vulnerable regions,” she added.
Madeleine Diouf Sarr, chair of the Least Developed Countries Group, mentioned, “It is disappointing that climate finance growth has slowed since 2018, when it should have accelerated. The largest gaps are in the developing world. But so too are the largest opportunities. We must shift these flows and increase access to finance to advance our collective prosperity and reach net zero.”
Dr AKM Saiful Islam, lead Author of IPCC Sixth Assessment Report and also director of Institute of Water and Flood Management of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, said, “According to this report, overall global adaptation has not kept pace with the increasing impacts of climate change.”
He said, “Urgent and rapid actions are needed to implement these plans and strategies. We need global support for implementation of our adaptation and mitigation plans from Green Climate Funds and Loss and Damage Funds and other financial sources.”
