An international coalition of scientists has delivered a report on the Earth that is the equivalent of a doctor telling a patient to sit down for a very serious talk. The climate experts say they assessed 35 of the planet's "vital signs," and 25 were worse than ever before, including carbon emissions and temperatures both on land and in the oceans, the Guardian reports. "We are on the brink of an irreversible climate disaster. This is a global emergency beyond any doubt," the scientists wrote in the report published in the journal BioScience. "Much of the very fabric of life on Earth is imperiled. We are stepping into a critical and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis."
"We find ourselves amid an abrupt climate upheaval, a dire situation never before encountered in the annals of human existence," warned the scientists, who said climate-related disasters are likely to increase "dramatically" if the current trajectory continues.
- Feedback loops. The researchers looked at "amplifying feedback loops" including thawing permafrost, rising sea levels, and declining snow cover. They urged authorities to raise awareness of the feedback loops, noting that some are approaching tipping points that could lead to "major and irreversible changes in the Earth system without further pushing by human activities."
- Fossil fuel use at all-time high. The scientists said fossil fuel use reached an all-time high in 2023, though renewable energy use also grew despite "stiff resistance from those benefiting financially from the current fossil-fuel based system."
- A 'profound polycrisis.' "Climate-related extreme weather and disasters are contributing greatly to human suffering," they wrote—though climate change is merely one aspect of a profound polycrisis that includes environmental degradation, rising economic inequality, and biodiversity loss."
- Risk of societal collapse. "As pressures increase and the risk of Earth's climate system switching to a catastrophic state rise, more and more scientists have begun to research the possibility of societal collapse," the researchers wrote. "Climate change has already displaced millions of people, and has the potential to displace hundreds of millions or even billions more, leading to greater geopolitical instability."
- Recommendations. As other scientists have been urging for decades, the researchers called for reducing fossil fuel use and cutting emissions. "Drastically cutting methane emissions can slow the near-term rate of global warming, helping to avoid tipping points and extreme climate impacts," they wrote. They also called for moves including "drastically reducing overconsumption and waste, especially by the affluent."
- 'The future of humanity hangs in the balance.' The researchers warned that "ecological overshoot," in which the Earth's resources are used up faster than they can regenerate, is an "inherently unstable state that cannot persist indefinitely." "We must urgently reduce ecological overshoot and pursue immediate large-scale climate change mitigation and adaptation to limit near-term damage," they wrote. "Only through decisive action can we safeguard the natural world, avert profound human suffering, and ensure that future generations inherit the livable world they deserve. The future of humanity hangs in the balance."
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