Global Tipping Points
Latest report from Global Tipping Points warned that the world has reached its first climate “tipping point” as global warming pushes warm-water coral reefs towards an irreversible decline.
The report was co-authored by more than 160 scientists in 23 countries (led by Professor Tim Lenton from the University of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute). Summary can be downloaded here.
As the report summary says: "The world has entered a new reality. Global warming will soon exceed 1.5°C. This puts humanity in the danger zone where multiple climate tipping points pose catastrophic risks to billions of people.".
12 Key messages from the report
- Earth’s climate and nature are already passing tipping points as global warming approaches 1.5°C.
- Overshooting 1.5°C puts the world in a danger zone where further tipping points pose catastrophic risks.
- Every fraction of a degree and every year over 1.5°C matters for preventing climate tipping points.
- Leaders at COP30 must act now to prevent damaging tipping points.
- For warm-water coral reefs, the Amazon rainforest and other ecosystems at risk of tipping, reducing non-climate stressors can help increase their resilience to tipping.
- Since 2023, there has been a radical acceleration in the uptake of clean technologies worldwide, notably solar PV power and electric vehicles.
- The most effective policies to trigger positive tipping points in the energy system are generally policy mandates to phase in clean technologies and transition away from fossil fuelled ones.
- All sources of public and private finance can be engaged to reduce the cost of capital for low-carbon technologies and resilient infrastructure, particularly for the benefit of Global South countries.
- Positive tipping points are already reducing energy prices worldwide, accelerating access to cheap electricity for those that lack it, and benefitting the economies of net fossil fuel importing countries where three-quarters of people live.
- Policy changes are needed worldwide to help eliminate the 25% of greenhouse gas emissions linked to food, farming, and deforestation and in so doing, help reverse global biodiversity loss.
- Nature regeneration can be positively tipped, and social tipping points are already spreading nature positive initiatives, including marine protected areas.
- Positive tipping points can cascade between different parts of society and the economy.
"Every tipping point of danger can be mirrored by a tipping point of opportunity."
