On Monday, the countries of the world gather in Baku, Azerbaijan. The annual climate summit is approaching. The backdrop is getting more and more serious. A recent report from the EU’s climate service shows that 2024 is likely to be the first year in which warming exceeds 1.5 degrees. The figure clearly shows that the temperature has increased. For the first time, the global temperature increase of more than 1.5 degrees is recorded. Through the Paris Agreement, the countries have undertaken to limit the global temperature rise on earth to well below 2 degrees, and preferably 1.5 degrees. Today’s temperature news goes in the opposite direction. CLOSED: The tourist attraction Acropolis in Athens was closed to visitors during the day in July, when the temperature was at its highest. Photo: Petros Giannakouris / AP So far this year, there have been a number of heat records around the world. – After 10 months of 2024, it is now almost certain that 2024 will be the warmest year on record. Deputy director for Copernicus climate service Samantha Burgess, explains that according to the data set, it will also be the first year with more than 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. The big picture: What if we don’t meet the 1.5 degree target? In recent years, global temperatures have approached the limit of 1.5 degrees warming dangerously fast. Although few now believe that we can meet the ambitious target from the Paris Agreement to avoid the worst consequences of climate change, all hope is not lost. Swipe on to understand what the rise in temperature means, and what we can do about it. Javier Ernesto Auris Chavez / news 1.5 degrees That temperatures in the world are rising by 1.5 degrees from pre-industrial times may sound small. But the world is already seeing consequences such as more frequent and more powerful extreme weather, and glaciers that are melting and will contribute to increased sea level rise. Here in Norway, the Norwegian Climate Services Center notices an increase in torrential rain. In 2023, the temperature was 1.45 degrees warmer than pre-industrial times. Two degrees For every degree the temperature rises, the consequences get worse. If the temperature rises by two degrees from pre-industrial times, the research says, among other things, that almost all shallow-water tropical coral reefs will disappear. Extreme heat, which previously only happened once a decade, can be expected approximately every two years. Two degrees of warming also threatens food security in parts of the world. The UN’s climate panel says the Arctic can experience one ice-free summer every decade with this warming Three degrees If the world manages to implement the climate cuts they have promised, we will avoid experiencing a global warming of three degrees. According to UNEP, the measures are enough to stop warming at 2.6 degrees. Three degrees of warming is a dramatic scenario where many people experience deadly heat waves every year. There are an estimated 96,000 heat-related deaths in Europe alone. The chance that we will reach so-called tipping points with major, irreversible changes in the climate system is also significantly greater. Truls Alnes Antonsen / © Is it just to give up, then? Fewer and fewer people think we can manage to limit warming to 1.5 degrees. That does not mean that there is no point in doing anything. For every decimal degree of warming the world manages to avoid, the consequences will be made one notch less serious. The world’s leaders have promised to introduce major climate cuts. Even with current policies, the world will continue to warm. But the more we manage to do, the less the consequences will be. – This marks a new milestone in global temperature records. She believes the records should lead to the ambitions being turned up during the upcoming climate conference in Baku, also called COP29. The Chingaza Lagoon supplies millions of Bogotá residents with water. In April, it had a water level of 15 percent. Photo: Ivan Valencia / ap – No help from the USA After Donald Trump won the election in the US, several Norwegian climate organizations have stated that they do not think the world can count on help from the US in the fight against global climate change. – Donald Trump’s victory could be devastating for the global climate effort, says Norwegian Church Aid’s climate advisor Matilde Angeltveit. The climate summit opens on Monday. Photo: Sergei Grits / AP Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, who is traveling to Baku next week, believes that it is international climate cooperation that will become weaker. – I am quite sure that we will not get as strong a voice in the international climate negotiations as we have had with Biden and with John Kerry who was his climate envoy, and John Podesta who is now. The Paris Agreement The last time Donald Trump was president, he withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement. President Joe Biden signed the US back in, but Trump has announced that he wants out of the agreement again. It is Biden’s administration that meets on behalf of the United States during the climate summit, but everyone knows that they will soon be finished. There is therefore great tension as to whether other countries will take more or less responsibility. The Climate Summit will be held this year in Baku. Photo: Sergei Grits / AP Leader of the Nature Conservation Association Truls Gulowsen believes that Trump’s election victory will put the world to the test. He emphasizes that there must be concrete action and ambitious objectives at the climate summit. – The climate summit must send a clear signal that the international climate work is strong and will continue regardless of the political winds. Cooperation across national borders is in the self-interest of all countries, and the summit provides a unique opportunity to show strength and unity. Exceeding 1.5 degrees in one year does not mean that one has failed in the goal. It is only if the average is 1.5 over several years. But several researchers believe that we can also quickly approach this limit. Published 07.11.2024, at 04.00
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First year above 1.5 degrees – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
