5 things you should know about the latest and most dangerous UN report on the state of the world's climate

"The scale of recent changes in aspects of the climate system as a whole is unprecedented for centuries or several millennia," said a special report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on Monday 9 August.

Hundreds of scientists from around the world have finalized the State of the Global Climate report, which is so important that governments and industries everywhere use it to understand the threats ahead.

The authors of the report wrote that in light of the available evidence, they have "high confidence" that atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations were higher in 2019 than at any point in at least two million years, and that Earth's surface temperature "has increased since 1970 is faster than any other 50 years in the last two thousand years at least.

The report talks about the effects of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emissions pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty.

What is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change?

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established in 1988 to provide comprehensive assessments of the state of scientific, technical, social, and economic understanding of climate change, its causes, potential impacts, and strategies to address it.

The Commission was awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, jointly with Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States of America, in recognition of their work on climate change.

Since its inception, the body, which is affiliated with the United Nations and includes 195 Member States, has prepared 5 multi-volume evaluation reports and is now in its sixth evaluation cycle.

Each panel country can nominate scholars to participate in the report writing process, and there is an extensive and transparent review process.

The panel does not tell governments what to do, but its goal is to provide the latest knowledge about climate change, its future risks, and options for reducing global warming.

More than 200 people died as a result of the floods that swept Europe in July 2021 (Getty Images)

Why is this report so important?

Every 7 years or so, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) releases a report - primarily on "The State of the Climate" - summarizing the latest peer-reviewed research on climate change and its impacts, adaptations and mitigations.

Its purpose is to provide everyone, especially the top governing bodies, with the information they need to make important decisions about climate change.

The previous IPCC assessment was released in 2013, and a lot has changed in the last eight years. Not only have computer speed and climate modeling improved dramatically, but every year scientists are understanding more about the Earth's climate system and the ways in which regions and people are changing. around the world and their exposure to climate change.

Extreme weather events in 2021 from wildfires to extreme temperatures (Pixabe)

Where does the search come from?

The IPCC does not conduct its own climate science research. Instead, the new report features 234 scientists nominated by IPCC member governments, who are leading experts in Earth and climate sciences.

This report is the first of four that make up the IPCC's Sixth Assessment Report looking at the physical sciences behind climate change and its impacts, and alone will contain more than 14,000 citations for climate science research published as of January 31, 2021.

These scientists, who were not compensated for their time and effort, volunteered to read those papers to form a scientific consensus on topics such as extreme weather or regional changes in sea level rise.

The IPCC is transparent about its review process, and drafts of the report are shared with other scientists, as well as governments, for comment.

Before publication, the 234 authors had to process more than 75,000 comments on their work.

Government input is limited only to commenting on draft reports.

However, governments have a stronger say in the shorter summary for policymakers that accompanies these reports, as they must agree unanimously and enter into detailed negotiations over the wording.

20 Fossil Fuel Companies Responsible for a Third of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Pixabay)

What might the future look like?

To get a glimpse into the future, scientists run experiments using computer models that simulate Earth's climate, and the agency uses a range of scenarios to try to understand what the future might look like.

Using these models, scientists can answer many questions about what would happen if the globe warmed, and all climate models work slightly differently and produce different results.

But if 20 different climate models were run using the same assumptions about the amount of warming and produced similar results, then people can be fairly confident in the results.

To get a glimpse into the future, scientists simulate Earth's climate using computer models (Pixabe)

Why should you care?

Look around you.

So far, 2021 has seen deadly extreme weather events across the globe, from widespread wildfires to extreme temperatures, torrential rains and flash floods, and events like these will become more common in an increasingly warming world.

You also have to understand that 20 companies that run on fossil fuels are responsible for about a third of greenhouse gas emissions.

So, read the report and learn about the main sources of greenhouse gases that lead to climate change.

This requires governments to take action now, and individuals can take steps to reduce their emissions, including driving less, using energy-efficient lights, and rethinking food choices.