Un report on climate change 2013 pdf

Concentration of carbon dioxide, the most important greenhouse gas, reached The economic slowdown from COVID did not have any discernible impact on atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases and their growth rates, although there was a temporary decline in new emissions. Roughly half of carbon dioxide emitted by human activities today remains in the atmosphere.

The report adds to the scientific evidence underlining the urgency of cutting global greenhouse gas emissions, stepping up climate ambition and increasing financing for adaptation. Greater weather and climate variability mean that up to million extremely poor people in Africa may face drought, floods and extreme heat by Without response measures, poverty alleviation efforts will slow and gross domestic product could fall by up to 3 percent by COVID paused but did not slow the relentless advance of climate change.

Record levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere commit the planet to dangerous future warming, according to a new report that links the latest findings from across the United Nations. Rising global temperatures are fuelling extreme weather throughout the world, impacting economies and societies. The average global temperature for the past five years was among the highest on record, and the scale of recent changes across the global climate system is unprecedented over many centuries to many thousands of years.

Even with ambitious action to slow greenhouse gas emissions, sea levels will continue to rise and threaten low-lying islands and coastal populations throughout the world. The findings reinforce critical momentum behind climate action to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Climate change is widespread, rapid and intensifying. That is the key finding of the latest scientific report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Many changes are unprecedented in thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of years. Some, such as continued sea-level rise, are irreversible over hundreds to thousands of years. The report points to strong and sustained reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to limit climate change. Benefits for air quality would come quickly, while global temperatures would take years to stabilize.

It includes a closer look at the regional dimensions of climate change and builds on advances in attributing specific weather and climate events to climate change. The global average temperature was about 1. The six years since have been the warmest on record, with the warmest decade on record. The report documents indicators of the climate system, including greenhouse gas concentrations, increasing land and ocean temperatures, sea level rise, melting ice and glacier retreat and extreme weather.

It also highlights impacts on socioeconomic development, migration and displacement, food security and land and marine ecosystems. Carbon dioxide levels have pushed past another record threshold, after rising in at a rate faster than the average for the last 10 years. Increasing temperatures and sea levels, changing precipitation patterns and more extreme weather are threatening human health and safety, food and water security and socio-economic development in Africa, according to the State of the Climate in Africa Report devoted exclusively to the continent.

The report provides a snapshot of current and future climate trends and associated impacts on the economy and sensitive sectors like agriculture.

It highlights lessons for climate action in Africa and identifies pathways for addressing critical gaps and challenges. As climate change continues to threaten human lives, ecosystems and economies, risk information and early warning systems EWS are increasingly seen as key for reducing these impacts.

United in Science , a new multi-agency report from leading science organizations, highlights the increasing and irreversible impacts of climate change, which affects glaciers, oceans, nature, economies and human living conditions and is often felt through water-related hazards like drought or flooding.

It also documents how COVID has impeded our ability to monitor these changes through the global observing system. The tell-tale physical signs of climate change, such as increasing land and ocean heat, accelerating sea level rise and melting ice, contributed to making the second warmest year on record according to a new report compiled by a network led by the World Meteorological Organization.

The report documents the increasing impacts of weather and climate events on socio-economic development, human health, migration and displacement, food security and land and marine ecosystems. The physical signs and socio-economic impacts of climate change are accelerating as record greenhouse gas concentrations drive global temperatures towards increasingly dangerous levels, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization.

The WMO Statement on the State of the Global Climate in , its 25th anniversary edition, highlights record sea level rise, as well as exceptionally high land and ocean temperatures over the past four years.

This warming trend has lasted since the start of this century and is expected to continue. Limiting global warming to 1. With clear benefits to people and natural ecosystems, limiting global warming to 1. The report found that levels of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have reached another new record high, according to the World Meteorological Organization. There is no sign of a reversal in this trend, which is driving long-term climate change, sea level rise, ocean acidification and more extreme weather.

It shows that human influence on the climate system is clear, and recent anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases are the highest in history. Recent climate changes have had widespread impacts on human and natural systems. This is the first report of its kind for Latin America and the Caribbean and it shows that the region is facing increasing temperatures, glaciers retreat, sea-level rise, ocean acidification, coral reefs bleaching, land and marine heatwaves, intense tropical cyclones, floods, droughts, and wildfires.

The report emphasizes the need to enhance climate resilience through identified pathways, such as ecosystem-based responses, as well as strengthened climate services and multi-hazard early warning systems.

This report provides informed climate analysis and climate change trends for states and territories across the vast South-West Pacific Ocean, the adjacent oceanic areas north of the equator and the eastern parts of the Indian Ocean. The first report of its kind, it highlights the real and potential risks associated with the changes occurring in ocean circulation, temperature, acidification and deoxygenation, as well as rising sea-level.

Climate and extreme weather events had major and diverse impacts on population movements and on the vulnerability of people already on the move in the region throughout Addressing the rising climate risks and associated impacts requires local, regional and transnational capacity building, development of climate services and integrated disaster risk reduction approaches. While policies and planning are increasing for climate change adaptation, financing and implementation are still far behind.

Moreover, countries have largely missed the opportunity to use the pandemic recovery to prioritize green economic growth and adapt to climate impacts such as droughts, storms and wildfire. Estimated adaptation costs in developing countries are five to 10 times greater than current public adaptation finance flows, and the gap is widening. But small island developing States and least developed countries are leading the way on greater ambition despite contributing only a marginal share of global emissions.

The report stresses that it is time for the G20 countries to step up given that they emit the most. In reviewing the most recent national climate action plans, known as nationally determined contributions, the report finds that they are higher quality, more inclusive and country driven than in an earlier round. But finance remains a key hurdle.

While countries are increasingly engaging the private sector as critical to scaled up climate action, they are not adequately defining needs in just transition processes. Issues related to gender equality and youth feature more prominently yet more needs to be done to capitalize on the potential of these groups as climate actors and leaders.

Extreme weather and climate change impacts across Asia in caused the loss of life of thousands of people, displaced millions of others and cost hundreds of billions of dollars, while wreaking a heavy toll on infrastructure and ecosystems. Sustainable development is threatened, with food and water insecurity, health risks and environmental degradation on the rise. A new report provides an overview of land and ocean temperatures, precipitation, glacier retreat, shrinking sea ice, sea level rise and severe weather.

It examines socioeconomic impacts in a year when the region was also struggling with the COVID pandemic, which in turn complicated disaster management.

The report shows how every part of Asia was affected, from Himalayan peaks to low-lying coastal areas, from densely populated cities to deserts and from the Arctic to the Arabian seas.

The latest Emissions Gap Report finds that updated national commitments for reducing emissions by only shave an additional 7. Reductions of 55 per cent are needed to stay on course in keeping global temperature rise to 1. Net-zero pledges could make a big difference if fully implemented, restraining predicted global temperature rise to 2. This provides hope that further action could still head off the most catastrophic impacts of climate change. But net-zero pledges are vague and incomplete in many cases.

To stay at no more than 1. Current annual emissions are close to 60 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. An updated synthesis of climate action plans communicated in Nationally Determined Contributions confirms overall trends identified in a full report released in September The update provides the last information to inform global climate talks at COP It synthesizes information from the latest available NDCs, representing all Parties to the Paris Agreement, including the new or updated NDCs communicated by Parties on 12 October For these Parties, total emissions are estimated to be about 9 per cent below the level by Some 71 Parties communicated a carbon neutrality goal around mid-century, with their emissions levels up to 88 per cent lower in than in For all available NDCs of all Parties, however, a sizable increase of about 16 per cent in global emissions is expected by compared to This may lead to a temperature rise of about 2.

The Production Gap Report finds that despite increased climate ambitions and net-zero commitments, governments plan to produce more than double the amount of fossil fuels in than what would be consistent with limiting global warming to 1.

Over the next two decades, governments are collectively projecting an increase in global oil and gas production, and only a modest decrease in coal production. Taken together, plans and projections see global, total fossil fuel production rising to at least The report provides country profiles for 15 major producer countries, where most governments continue to provide significant policy support for fossil fuel production.

Recent scientific evidence clearly confirms that unless global coal, oil, and gas production start declining immediately and steeply, warming will exceed 1. The report was launched with an open letter signed by over two thirds of the global health workforce — organizations representing at least 45 million doctors and health professionals worldwide. They call on national leaders and climate talks to step up climate action.

Increasingly frequent heatwaves, storms and floods kill thousands and disrupt millions of lives, while threatening health-care systems and facilities when they are needed most. Changes in weather and climate also undercut food security and drive up food-, water- and vector-borne diseases, such as malaria. Climate impacts are also negatively affecting mental health. A new report urges the world to wake up to the looming water crisis.

Water-related hazards like floods and droughts are increasing because of climate change. The number of people suffering water stress is expected to soar, exacerbated by population increases and dwindling availability. But management, monitoring, forecasting and early warnings are fragmented and inadequate, while global climate finance efforts are insufficient. The State of Climate Services Water highlights the need for urgent action to improve cooperative water management, embrace integrated water and climate policies, and scale up investment in this precious commodity.

It underpins all international goals on sustainable development, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by largely depends on addressing human-induced climate change. A new report demonstrates connections between global climate and the goals.

It champions the need for greater international collaboration to both achieve the SDGs and limit global warming to no more than 1. A story map highlights seven climate indicators with impacts across the global goals: carbon dioxide concentration, temperature, ocean acidification, ocean heat content, sea-ice extent, glacier mass balance and sea-level rise.

The report examines the implications of the latest data and scientific research on the state of the global climate for sustainable development, highlighting how the climate is already changing in ways that may impede progress on the SDGs. A synthesis of nationally determined contributions required under the Paris Agreement indicates that while there is a clear trend in reducing greenhouse gas emissions over time, nations must urgently redouble climate efforts to prevent global temperature from crossing a dangerous threshold of 1.

The new or updated NDCs cover about 49 per cent of global emissions. This is an important step towards the 45 per cent reduction in required to keep to the 1. NDCs of all Parties, however, imply a sizable 16 per cent increase in global emissions in Without immediate action, this could lead to a temperature rise of about 2.

The number of disasters increased by five times; economic losses rose sevenfold. But improved early warnings and disaster management reduced deaths by almost threefold. Weather, climate and water hazards accounted for 50 per cent of these disasters and nearly half of deaths, 91 per cent of which occurred in developing countries.

Of the top 10 disasters, the largest human losses came from droughts, storms, floods and extreme temperature. Storms and floods generated the greatest economic costs.

Three storms in alone accounted for a third of total economic losses from the top 10 disasters over the year period. It also considers children's vulnerability from gaps in essential services such as for education and health care.

While nearly every child in the world is at risk from at least one climate or environmental hazard, the worst affected countries face multiple and often overlapping shocks that threaten to erode development progress and deepen child deprivation. It shows how far the world has to go to tap the benefits of effective weather and climate services, but also highlights how investments in multi-hazard early warning systems create benefits worth at least 10 times their costs.

These are vital to build resilience to extreme weather, yet only 40 percent of countries currently have effective warning systems in place. Large gaps remain in vital data upon which these services depend, particularly in the least developed countries and small island developing States.

Accelerating energy transitions in line with a livable climate could double the number of energy jobs, up to million by , according to a new report. It also finds a substantial boost to the global economy of 2. The report predicts that renewables-based energy systems will instigate profound changes that will reverberate across economies and societies.

Sharp adjustments in capital flows and a reorientation of investments are necessary to align energy with a positive economic and environmental trajectory. Forward-looking policies can accelerate transition, mitigate uncertainties, and ensure maximum benefits of energy transition. The annual investment of USD 4. Drought affects millions of people, especially the most vulnerable. The impacts reach across societies, ecosystems and economies.

With climate change increasing temperatures and disrupting rainfall, drought frequency, severity and duration are on the rise many regions. This requires urgent action to better manage risks and reduce devastating tolls on human lives and livelihoods.

It stresses that risk prevention and mitigation have a far lower cost than reaction and response, and offers recommendations on how to achieve drought resilience. The Renewables Global Status Report shows that the world is nowhere near the necessary paradigm shift towards a clean, healthier and more equitable energy future, even as the benefits of renewables are indisputable. In many regions, it is now cheaper to build new wind or solar PV plants than to operate existing coal-fired power plants.

The report suggests accelerating the uptake of renewable energy by making it a key performance indicator for every economic activity, budget and public purchase, and adopting clear targets and plans to shift to renewable energy and end fossil fuel use.

Fossil fuels are a key contributor to the emissions of all seven. Taking the Temperature: Assessing and scaling-up climate ambition in the G7 business sector also finds that indexes with a higher share of emissions covered by science-based targets for reductions result in lower overall temperature ratings. Companies with such targets are already cutting emissions at scale, and despite the findings, momentum for climate action in G7 countries is growing.

Overall, was a milestone year for climate commitments, with the annual rate of adoption of science-based targets doubling compared to The report maps four key levers that governments, investors and businesses can use to unlock breakthrough climate action through such targets. More people have access to electricity than ever before but unless efforts are scaled up significantly in countries with the largest deficits, the world will still fall short of ensuring universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy by in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.

Under current and planned policies, and given fallout from the pandemic, an estimated million people would still lack access in The report examines how to bridge the gaps, such as by significantly scaling up renewable energy. But only 20 percent went to the least-developed countries, which are furthest from achieving SDG energy targets.

The Global Methane Assessment shows that human-caused methane emissions can be reduced by up to 45 per cent this decade, avoiding nearly 0. Because methane is a key ingredient in ground-level ozone smog , a powerful climate forcer and dangerous air pollutant, a 45 per cent reduction would prevent , premature deaths, , asthma-related hospital visits, 73 billion hours of lost labour from extreme heat and 25 million tonnes of crop losses annually.

Most human-caused methane emissions come from three sectors: fossil fuels, waste and agriculture. We must act decisively now to avert a climate catastrophe. But there is still time to limit climate change, IPCC experts say. Strong and sustained reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide CO2 and other greenhouse gases, could quickly make air quality better, and in 20 to 30 years global temperatures could stabilize.

The alarm bells are deafening, and the evidence is irrefutable". He noted that the internationally-agreed threshold of 1. We are at imminent risk of hitting 1. The only way to prevent exceeding this threshold, is by urgently stepping up our efforts, and persuing the most ambitious path.

The UN chief in a detailed reaction to the report, said that solutions were clear. He added that ahead of the crucial COP26 climate conference in Glasgow in November, all nations - especiall the advanced G20 economies - needed to join the net zero emissions coaltion, and reinforce their promises on slowing down and reversing global heating, "with credible, concrete, and enhanced Nationally Determined Contributions NDCs " that lay out detailed steps.

The report , prepared by scientists from 66 countries, highlights that human influence has warmed the climate at a rate that is unprecedented in at least the last 2, years. In , atmospheric CO2 concentrations were higher than at any time in at least 2 million years , and concentrations of methane and nitrous oxide were higher than at any time in the last , years. Global surface temperature has increased faster since than in any other year period over a least the last 2, years.

For example, temperatures during the most recent decade — exceed those of the most recent multi-century warm period, around 6, years ago , the report indicates. Meanwhile, global mean sea level has risen faster since , than over any preceding century in at least the last 3, years. The document shows that emissions of greenhouse gases from human activities are responsible for approximately 1.

The assessment is based on improved data on historical warming, as well as progress in scientific understanding of the response of the climate system to human-caused emissions. The experts reveal that human activities affect all major climate system components, with some responding over decades and others over centuries. Scientists also point out that evidence of observed changes in extremes such as heatwaves, heavy precipitation, droughts, and tropical cyclones, and their attribution to human influence, has strengthened.

They add that many changes in the climate system become larger in direct relation to increasing global warming. This includes increases in the frequency and intensity of heat extremes, marine heatwaves, and heavy precipitation; agricultural and ecological droughts in some regions; the proportion of intense tropical cyclones; as well as reductions in Arctic sea ice, snow cover and permafrost.

The report makes clear that while natural drivers will modulate human-caused changes, especially at regional levels and in the near term, they will have little effect on long-term global warming. The IPCC experts project that in the coming decades climate changes will increase in all regions. For 1.

For example, climate change is intensifying the natural production of water — the water cycle. This brings more intense rainfall and associated flooding, as well as more intense drought in many regions. It is also affecting rainfall patterns. In high latitudes, precipitation is likely to increase, while it is projected to decrease over large parts of the subtropics. Changes to monsoon rain patterns are expected, which will vary by region, the report warns.