Tom Burke: What is really significant is what the protests have already accomplished, they have changed the conversation. There is no question about the significance of what they have accomplished by bringing attention to this issue. I think that we have not understood the urgency of the climate problem, and how serious the consequences of policy failure in this area will be. I think that there has been a real failure of the political class to give people a good lead on what the nature of this problem is, and what needs to be done to address it. I think it is flat failure of the political class to offer decent leadership that has led to the level of frustration that is being expressed by the Extinction Rebellion campaign right now.
Tom Burke 18th April 2019 read more »
Reaching net-zero carbon emissions from heavy industry and heavy-duty transport sectors is technically and financially possible by mid-century – 2050 in developed countries and 2060 in developing countries. The report Mission Possible: Reaching net-zero carbon emissions from harder-to-abate sectors by mid-century outlines the possible routes to fully decarbonize cement, steel, plastics, trucking, shipping and aviation – which together represent 30% of energy emissions today and could increase to 60% by mid-century as other sectors lower their emissions. The “Mission Possible” report was developed with contributions from over 200 industry experts over a 6-month consultation process. Its findings show that full decarbonization is technically feasible with technologies that already exist, although several still need further investment to reach commercial readiness. The total cost to the global economy would be less than 0.5% of GDP by mid-century and could be reduced even further by improving energy efficiency, by making better use of carbon-intensive materials (through greater materials efficiency and recycling) and by limiting demand growth for carbon-intensive transport (through greater logistics efficiency and modal shift). The report shows that this would have only a minor impact on the cost of end consumer products.
Energy Transitions Commission (accessed) 20th April 2019 read more »
