United in Science 2021 Report

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), in a multi organisation compilation, compiled this report on behalf of the United Nations Secretary-General to bring together the latest climate science updates from a group of key global partner organisations: WMO, Global Carbon Project (GCP), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), World Health Organisation (WHO), Met Office (United Kingdom, UK), and the jointly sponsored WMO/Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (WCRP). Each chapter’s material is credited to its entity.

This study from the United Nations and its global scientific partners provides a comprehensive overview of the latest climate science research. Consequently, we have a frightening assessment of how far off course we are.

This year has witnessed a rebound in fossil fuel emissions, rising greenhouse gas concentrations, and severe human-enhanced weather events affecting every continent’s health, lives, and livelihoods.

Limiting warming to 1.5°C will be difficult unless greenhouse gas emissions are reduced immediately, rapidly, and globally, with disastrous repercussions for people and the Earth on which we rely.

This report in the multiorganizational high-level compilation is straightforward. The clock is ticking. To make the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, known as COP26, a watershed moment, all countries must commit to net zero emissions by 2050, supported by concrete long-term strategies and enhanced Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) that collectively cut global emissions by 45 per cent by 2030, compared to 2010 levels.

We need a breakthrough in safeguarding people and their livelihoods, with at least half of all public climate money dedicated to resilience building and assisting people in adapting. And we need far more solidarity, including the full implementation of the long-standing climate financing agreement to assist developing nations in taking climate action. There is no other option if we are to ensure a more secure, sustainable, and prosperous future for everybody.

Throughout the epidemic, we have been told that we must “build back better” to put mankind on a more sustainable path and avert the worst effects of climate change on society and economics. This research demonstrates that we are not on the right track in 2021.

Greenhouse gas concentrations, which are already at their highest levels in three million years, have risen further this year, setting new records. Fossil fuel emissions have returned to pre-pandemic levels or even increased in many industries. In 2017–2021 are among the warmest on record, with warming visible in many climate indicators such as sea ice, glacier melt, and sea-level rise.

United in Science 2021 fulfils its objective by presenting the most recent scientific facts and results on climate change to enlighten policymakers and decision-makers. This effort is dependent on a worldwide network of scientists and institutions, as well as vital supporting observation, modelling, and research infrastructure, all of which must be maintained if we are to fulfil the demands of today’s issues.

I want to thank the many expert teams involved in the creation of this report, particularly those from the Global Carbon Project, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the World Health Organisation, UN Environment, the World Climate Research Programme, and the Met Office (UK), for their collaboration in uniting the climate science community to deliver the most up-to-date critical information in these unprecedented times.

Report’s Key Findings in the multi organisational high-level compilation 

Concentrations of Greenhouse Gases in the Atmosphere (Global Atmosphere Watch/WMO)

• The principal greenhouse gases – CO2, CH4, and N2O – continued to rise in concentrations in 2020 and the first part of 2021
• Overall emissions cuts in 2020 are anticipated to minimise the yearly increase in long-lived greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. Still, the effect was too minor to separate from natural variability

In the near term, reducing atmospheric methane (CH4) might aid in accomplishing the Paris Agreement. It does not diminish the need for significant, fast, and long-term reductions in CO2 and other greenhouse gases.

Conclusion:

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), in multi organisation high-level compilation, compiled this report on behalf of the United Nations Secretary-General. It brings together the latest climate science updates from a group of key global partner organisations. Each chapter’s material is credited to its entity. As this report shows, climate change has become an epidemic, and we are not on the right track in 2021. In 2017–2021 are among the warmest on record, with warming visible in many climate indicators such as sea ice, glacier melt, and sea-level rise. The principal greenhouse gases – CO2, CH4, and N2O – continued to rise in concentrations in 2020 and the first part of 2021. Still, the effect was too minor to separate from natural variability.