The Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has garnered significant attention for its comprehensive assessment of climate change impacts, risks, vulnerabilities, and strategic adaptations required. This report is especially pertinent as it suggests that by 2040, we are likely to achieve a 1.5 degree Celsius increase in global warming.
The Overall Findings
The report clearly states that climate change is posing serious risks to over 3.5 billion people globally, making up over 45% of the world’s population. In particular, India is identified as a hotspot due to its numerous regions and cities facing the high risk of climate disasters like flooding, sea-level rise and heat-waves. For instance, Mumbai faces the high risk of sea-level rise and flooding, while Ahmedabad is dangerously susceptible to heat-waves.
Multi-Faceted Climate Risks
The IPCC report warns of complex, compound and cascading risks due to climate change. There will be simultaneous occurrences of multiple climate hazards, and these climatic and non-climatic risks will interact, resulting in compounded overall risk and cascading risks across sectors and regions. Notably, even if global temperature rise is kept within 1.5 degree Celsius from pre-industrial times, temporarily exceeding this limit will lead to additional severe impacts, which may be irreversible.
Regional Variation and Health Impacts
The vulnerability of ecosystems and people to climate change varies substantially among and within regions. Factors such as socio-economic development patterns, unsustainable ocean and land use, inequity, marginalization, colonial history, and governance contribute to this variation. The report reveals that climate change is increasing vector-borne and water-borne diseases such as malaria or dengue, particularly in sub-tropical regions of Asia. It further states that deaths related to circulatory, respiratory, diabetic and infectious diseases, as well as infant mortality, are likely to increase with rising temperature.
Current Adaptation Measures and their Benefits
While observed progress in adaptation planning and implementation across all sectors and regions is generating multiple benefits, the distribution of these efforts remains uneven. Current initiatives tend to prioritize immediate and near-term climate risk reduction, which reduces opportunities for transformational adaptation.
Adaptation Risks & Strategies
Despite progress made in the area of climate change adaptation, the report identifies several gaps including lack of funding, political commitment, reliable information, and urgency. Adaptation actions should go hand-in-hand with ambitious reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to be effective.
Need for Holistic Changes
The IPCC report emphasizes that minor or incremental changes will not suffice in tackling climate change. It calls for shifts in societal aspects alongside technological and economic changes. These transformations aim to overcome limits to adaptation, build resilience, reduce climate risk, guarantee inclusive development, and ensure no one is left behind.
The Role of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the IPCC assesses scientific evidence related to climate change. The Assessment Reports produced by the IPCC form the most comprehensive evaluations of the state of the earth’s climate.
About the Assessment Report of IPCC
Every approximately seven years, the IPCC produces Assessment Reports. These reports are authored by three working groups of scientists dealing with the scientific basis for climate change, potential impacts, vulnerabilities, and adaptation issues, and potential actions to combat climate change. These reports provide a foundation for global response to climate change, laying the groundwork for negotiations like the Paris Agreement and the Kyoto Protocol.