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Human Race Is Navigating in the Right Direction (2): COP21
At the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change held in Paris, France, on December 13, 2015, the
Paris Agreement was unanimously adopted by all 196 participating countries and
territories. Once again, mankind made the right choice on the brink of history. The
success of COP 21 provided hope for humanity that we can believe in.
The Paris Agreement called for limiting global warming to an increase of no
more than 2°C as a universal long-term goal with 1.5°C as the ambitious goal. The
goal is to eventually achieve zero-carbon emissions status (Fig. 5).
An increase of 2°C would already have a significant impact. Abnormal weather
would occur frequently, the melting of polar ice would accelerate, and the primary
industry would be severely damaged. Contrary to initial beliefs of global warming,
which held that the impact of global warming was limited only to some areas such
as Tuvalu, a small Polynesian island in the Pacific, its impact is in actual fact more
far-reaching than that. Countless environmental catastrophes such as the typhoon
that struck the Philippines, and tornadoes and torrential rainfalls that have started to
strike various parts of Japan, are all believed to be caused by climate change.
For many years, scholars maintained a conservative standpoint that climate
change, as understood from a long-term perspective, and sudden weather abnormalities are two unrelated concepts. However, they have since begun to ascertain
that much of the observed weather phenomena is clearly abnormal. The opinions of
these scholars, coupled with the observed environmental impacts on humans, likely
led to the Paris Agreement.
The human race has finally acknowledged that climate change is as much an
established fact as it is a threat, and has agreed to overcome it.
Fig. 5 Crowd at venue jubilant over adoption of COP21 Paris Agreement. (Courtesy: WWF
Japan)
Preface: From “Vision 2050” to “New Vision 2050”
Human Race Is Navigating in the Right Direction (2): COP21
At the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change held in Paris, France, on December 13, 2015, the
Paris Agreement was unanimously adopted by all 196 participating countries and
territories. Once again, mankind made the right choice on the brink of history. The
success of COP 21 provided hope for humanity that we can believe in.
The Paris Agreement called for limiting global warming to an increase of no
more than 2°C as a universal long-term goal with 1.5°C as the ambitious goal. The
goal is to eventually achieve zero-carbon emissions status (Fig. 5).
An increase of 2°C would already have a significant impact. Abnormal weather
would occur frequently, the melting of polar ice would accelerate, and the primary
industry would be severely damaged. Contrary to initial beliefs of global warming,
which held that the impact of global warming was limited only to some areas such
as Tuvalu, a small Polynesian island in the Pacific, its impact is in actual fact more
far-reaching than that. Countless environmental catastrophes such as the typhoon
that struck the Philippines, and tornadoes and torrential rainfalls that have started to
strike various parts of Japan, are all believed to be caused by climate change.
For many years, scholars maintained a conservative standpoint that climate
change, as understood from a long-term perspective, and sudden weather abnormalities are two unrelated concepts. However, they have since begun to ascertain
that much of the observed weather phenomena is clearly abnormal. The opinions of
these scholars, coupled with the observed environmental impacts on humans, likely
led to the Paris Agreement.
The human race has finally acknowledged that climate change is as much an
established fact as it is a threat, and has agreed to overcome it.
Fig. 5 Crowd at venue jubilant over adoption of COP21 Paris Agreement. (Courtesy: WWF
Japan)
Preface: From “Vision 2050” to “New Vision 2050”