IPCC report confirms current policies are not enough 

On 6^th April, the IPCC working group published its latest report, focused on climate change mitigation. Their conclusions are not surprising, as UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres put it: “[this report] is a litany of broken promises”. We are not on track to limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2050. Even though the GHG emissions increase between 2010 and 2019 has not been as high as between 2000 and 2010, we reached an unprecedented high peak in 2019. Our GHG emissions must peak before 2025 and be reduced by 43% by 2030 if we want to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2050 and limit global warming to 1.5°C.

A lot of work remains to be done, but solutions are already at our reach! We were pleased to notice the IPCC working group highlighted some of the recommendation Energy Cities has been promoting already for some time:

We need bolder politicians

Climate policies and laws have been expanding in recent years, but this is not enough. We have the science, we have the technologies, but politicians hold the key to effective climate change mitigation.  

See our proposal to mandate integrated local planning in the revised Renewable Energy Directive

We need to stop fossil fuels investments now

Public and private finance flows remain higher for fossil fuels than for climate adaptation and mitigation. There is no other choice than to divest from fossil fuels, and redirect funds towards climate action and renewable energy production.

Have a look at the Community Power Coalition letter urging the Commission to drop gas and nuclear from their taxonomy for sustainable activities

Small is beautiful

Small-sized low carbon energy production units hold huge promise. The IPCC working group agrees they are cheaper and have higher learning potential, making them a great tool to fight climate change. We believe the success of renewable energy communities in the recent years demonstrates that – this model works and should be replicated/scaled up all over the world.

Have a look at our step by step guide to set up energy communities

Who are the radicals now?

UN Secretary General was, yet again, on point when he said that “Climate activists are sometimes depicted as dangerous radicals. But the truly dangerous radicals are the countries that are increasing the production of fossil fuels. Investing in new fossil fuels infrastructure is moral and economic madness.“

Want to learn more?

Read the full report. A Summary for Policymakers and a Technical Summary are also available