IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report

IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report
 

News: According to the 4th and final installment Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) under the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), there is increased evidence of maladaptation in various sectors and regions.
 

About IPCC:
 The IPCC is the UN body for assessing the science related to climate change.
 It was set up in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization and United Nations Environment Programme to provide policymakers with regular assessments of the scientific basis of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation.
 

Key Findings:
 Human-induced global warming of 1.1 degrees Celsius has spurred changes to the Earth’s climate that are unprecedented in recent human history.
 Climate impacts on people and ecosystems are more widespread and severe than expected, and future risks will escalate rapidly with every fraction of a degree of warming.
 Adaptation measures can effectively build resilience, but more finance is needed to scale solutions. Climate policies in at least 170 countries now consider adaptation, but in many nations, these efforts have yet to progress from planning to implementation. Measures to build resilience are still largely smallscale, reactive and incremental, with most focusing on immediate impacts or nearterm risks.
 It is likely that there is more than 50% chance that global temperature rise will reach or surpass 1.5 degrees Celsius between 2021 and 2040 across studied scenarios, and under a high-emissions pathway, specifically, the world may hit this threshold even sooner — between 2018 and 2037.
 India has many such examples of maladaptation, resulting in vulnerable communities becoming more helpless to the impacts of climate change rather than being able to adapt to them.
 Maladaptation is defined as the changes in natural or human systems that inadvertently increase vulnerability to climate stimuli. It is an adaptation measure that does not succeed in reducing vulnerability but increases it instead.
 Odisha has one of the most dynamic coasts in the country, with sea levels rising at a rate more than the average for the rest of the country. It is also the most cyclone-prone state in India.

Key recommenda tions

o Rapid shift away from Burning Fossil Fuels
o Retire existing fossil fuel infrastructure, cancel new projects
o Retrofit fossil fuel powered plants with Carbon capture and Storage technologies
o Scale up renewable sources of energy - Solar & Wind
 

Way Forward
 Certain future changes are unavoidable but could be limited by deep, rapid and sustained global GHG emissions reduction based on the principle of climate justice. Therefore, mainstreaming effective and equitable climate action will not only reduce losses and damages, but will also provide wider benefits.