by admin | Apr 2, 2025 | africa, climate, climate change, environmentalism, global warming
Addis Ababa, April 1, 2025 (ENA) — According to Jolly Wasambo, who serves as the coordinator of the AUC’s Intra-ACP Climate Services and Related Applications program, coordinated collective action across the continent is essential for addressing climate challenges in Africa.
As he states, many African nations are involved in climate initiatives centered around natural resources.
“In Ethiopia, they have initiated the Green Legacy program, which involves planting billions of trees… This green movement is crucial for addressing problems like land degradation due to desertification and enhancing carbon capture,” according to the coordinator.
He pointed out that other nations have their own programs too, suggesting, “Why don’t we unite as one continent and declare, ‘This initiative was launched in Ethiopia, this project was implemented in Tanzania, and this program succeeded in Burkina Faso?'”
Wasambo thinks that Africans ought to unite and strive for cooperation between countries, enabling them to exchange experiences; allowing them to adopt best practices as well, and subsequently support each other in this collective effort.
The coordinator additionally mentioned that the African Union has created the Great Green Wall Framework and Strategy.
The African Union has developed the Great Green Wall Framework and Strategy, which essentially aims to bring these nations together in the region, ensuring their commitment to moving forward with this initiative.
He explained that dependable and prompt climate data is essential for delivering accessible, current, and trustworthy information and services. This helps support socioeconomic growth at both national and continental levels.
Wasambo argued that the African Union Commission is ideally suited for coordinating these initiatives.
“When it comes to Africa, the AUC is the entity responsible for these initiatives, and they are actively involved across several sectors,” he stated, adding that the commission is particularly focused on uniting member states in forestry and sustainable management of the blue economy.
Moreover, the coordinator advocated for a cooperative strategy to build upon current programs and new ideas such as the Green Legacy initiative in Ethiopia and similar efforts.
Most importantly, as we proceed, we must also keep our eyes wide open. What other new initiatives and innovations are emerging?
Through the ClimSA initiative, he mentioned that the AUC is dedicated to improving the ability of member countries to produce and use accurate climate data.
To achieve this, we require accurate and up-to-date climate data for policymakers to make informed decisions, alongside enabling those who utilize such information to enhance their economic growth and overall wellbeing within their respective nations.
This initiative seeks to fill data gaps through the use of space technology and by offering infrastructure along with training to participating countries.
“We must enhance the capabilities of national meteorological and hydrological agencies since they generate weather and climate data, which all sectors can utilize,” Wasambo explained further.
The coordinator highlighted that the Integrated African Strategy for Meteorology, Weather, and Climate Services was approved in 2022.
The strategy serves as a roadmap for the continent, outlining how it can produce information.
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by admin | Mar 25, 2025 | carbon emissions, climate change, environmentalism, global warming, greenhouse gases
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EXPLORE FURTHER: Scientists sound alarm as Earth’s glaciers deemed unlikely to endure through 2050s
Our ancestors in the near future might face a challenging journey – even if we succeed in reducing our carbon output, according to a recent research paper.
The Earth might heat up by as much as 7°C (12.6°F) by the year 2200, even with moderate carbon dioxide emissions, researchers have found.
Germany
The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK).
The extreme heat conditions would make it difficult for typical crops to thrive, leading to worldwide food shortages and potentially famine.
In the meantime, increasing sea levels from thawing ice sheets could compel individuals to abandon coastal urban areas because of inundation.
Furthermore, in this scenario, severe extreme weather occurrences like droughts, heat waves, wildfires, tropical storms, and floods would become frequent.
Particularly during summertime, temperatures might soar to alarmingly high degrees, presenting a fatal risk to individuals of every age group.
Christine Kaufhold, who led the study at PIK, stated that the results underscore the critical necessity for more rapid actions aimed at reducing and extracting carbon from the environment.
“We discovered that the maximum temperature increase might be significantly greater than earlier anticipated for low-to-moderate emissions,” she stated.
Planetary-heating greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane are predominantly emitted through the combustion of fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas for energy purposes.
However, greenhouse gases also originate from natural processes like volcanic eruptions, plant respiration, and animal breath — which is precisely why their contribution must be considered.
carbon reduction technologies
.
In this research, the group employed a recently created computer model they developed, named CLIMBER-X, to mimic potential future global warming situations.
CLIMBER-X combines crucial physical, biological, and geochemical mechanisms, encompassing atmospheric and oceanic factors related to methane.
Stronger even than carbon dioxide (CO2), methane originates from landfills as waste breaks down and naturally emits from wetlands.
The model examined three scenarios referred to as ‘Shared Socioeconomic Pathways’ (SSPs). These were grounded in low, medium, and high anticipated global emission levels spanning the remainder of this century.
As per the experts, many climate studies up to this point have only projected outcomes as far ahead as 2300 — a timeframe that might not capture the peak of warming.
Based on the research, there’s a 10 percent probability that our planet could still heat up by 3°C (5.4°F) by the year 2200, even if we halted all emissions immediately.
Methane: A potent atmospheric warming agent
Methane is a colorless, odorless combustible gas, and it forms the primary component of natural gas.
Methane is a greenhouse gas, ranking as the second largest contributor to climate change following carbon dioxide.
It serves as the main element in natural gas, utilized for warming our residences.
When methane is used as a fuel and combusted, it releases carbon dioxide (CO2) and thus is not immediately released at that instance.
Nevertheless, throughout every stage of the extraction, transportation, and storage processes, there are leakages of natural gas that add to greenhouse gas emissions.
The team believes that global warming throughout this millennium might surpass earlier predictions because of ‘carbon cycle feedback loops,’ where one alteration in the climate intensifies another, processes that are currently not receiving adequate attention.
For instance, wet weather encourages the proliferation of specific inflammable grasses, which
once they dry out, they can lead to wildfires spreading uncontrolled
.
An additional instance occurs when CO2 dissolves in rainwater, leading to the breakdown of rocks and possibly freeing more CO2 into the atmosphere.
Alarming as it is, cutting down future emissions might not suffice to curb these feedback mechanisms, since greenhouse gases already released could still exert prolonged impacts on global temperatures.
Furthermore, meeting the objective of the Paris Agreement to restrict the global temperature increase to less than 2°C (3.6°F) is realistic solely under conditions involving significantly lower emissions.
The significant legally-binding international agreement signed in 2015 seeks to ensure that global temperature rise stays under 2.7°F (1.5°C).
However, the team asserts that the opportunity to restrict global warming to under 2°C is swiftly diminishing.
“Accelerated carbon reduction is necessary at an even faster pace than initially anticipated to maintain the goals of the Paris agreement within our grasp,” stated Matteo Willeit, a researcher from PIK and co-author of the study.
The latest research, featured in
Environmental Research Letters
, emphasizes “the uncertainties involved in forecasting future climate change.”
“Our study unequivocally shows that the choices we make today will shape the course of life on Earth for generations to come,” stated co-author and PIK director Johan Rockström.
We are already observing indications that the Earth’s systems are becoming less resilient, potentially leading to feedback mechanisms that could heighten climate sensitivity, hasten global warming, and widen discrepancies from projected trends.
‘For a habitable future, we need to swiftly intensify our actions to decrease emissions.’
The objective of the Paris Agreement is not merely a political aim; it is an essential physical boundary.
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by admin | Mar 24, 2025 | carbon emissions, climate change, energy consumption, energy sector, global warming
The rate of increase in global energy demand shot up last year, driving increased greenhouse gas emissions even with renewable energy and nuclear power supplying bulk of new electricity generation capacity.
On Monday, the International Energy Agency announced a 2.2% rise in worldwide energy consumption for the previous year, nearly doubling the annual average growth rate of 1.3% observed during the ten years leading up to 2023. However, electricity usage experienced an impressive spike of 4.3%, fueled primarily by heightened demands from data centers, electric vehicles, and particularly, air conditioning units.
The surge in extreme weather events, particularly heatwaves in China, India, and the U.S., accounted for one-fifth of the heightened demand for natural gas and electricity observed last year. Additionally, these conditions entirely drove a 123-million tonne (1.4%) rise in coal consumption, mostly at power plants, according to the report from an international organization based in Paris.
“The global heat waves, conversely, increased the demand for electricity, leading to a rise in coal consumption growth—particularly in certain nations such as China and India,” stated IEA President Fatih Birol during the unveiling of the 2025 edition of the Global Energy Review.
The evident trend led the IEA to discontinue at the end of last year their prediction that coal consumption was poised to reach its apex shortly, with worldwide demand expected to hit 8.7 billion tonnes in 2024.
This indicates that even though renewable sources such as solar and wind fulfilled 38% of the extra worldwide energy needs, with nuclear power adding another 8% and reaching an all-time high in electricity production, more than half of the rise in energy consumption was satisfied by coal, oil, and natural gas. This resulted in a 0.8% growth in energy-linked CO2 emissions.
Although this represents roughly two-thirds of the growth rate observed in the prior year, the overall tendency continues to be upward. This raises doubts yet again regarding the international community’s commitment to tackling climate change and achieving the net-zero emissions target, which scientists agree is essential at minimum to curb increasing temperatures.
If we look for the positive aspect, we can observe that there has been an ongoing separation between economic expansion and emission increases,” stated Laura Cozzi, who oversees the IEA’s efforts on energy sustainability and authored the report. Last year, the world economy expanded by 3.2%, significantly outpacing total energy consumption, thus reverting to a long-term trend following some disruptions caused by the pandemic.
Moreover, the global trajectory seems aligned with the commitment established during the COP28 climate conference in Dubai back in 2023 to triple the pace of renewable energy expansion by the end of this decade, as stated by Cozzi. “Regarding renewables, we’re nearly there—we stand at roughly a 2.7-fold growth by 2030,” he added.
However, according to the recent IEA report, this does not hold true for the commitment to double the yearly pace of energy efficiency enhancements—a measure indicative of reduced demand—which was also established during the worldwide climate conference that the UN celebrated as the “dawn” of the age without fossil fuels.
“If you examine the trends from last year, rather than a doubling, we’ve actually observed a halving,” Cozzi stated.
by admin | Mar 24, 2025 | climate, climate change, environmentalism, global warming, sustainability
Climate change has emerged as an urgent issue affecting people’s lives and incomes in Pakistan. Yet, it remains largely seen as a topic only for specialists, leading to widespread apathy among the general population. Addressing this challenge requires participation from all sectors of society—families, educational institutions, work environments, and every individual. Educational facilities ought to integrate lessons about climate change and environmental stewardship, news outlets should discuss these topics regularly, and companies must embrace eco-friendly operations. Citizens can help by participating in initiatives like planting trees, organizing clean-up events, and advocating for sustainable agriculture methods. Immediate action is imperative.
I urgently encourage policymakers, educators, the media, and business leaders to emphasize climate consciousness and implementation of solutions. Building a sustainable tomorrow necessitates taking steps right now.
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by admin | Mar 24, 2025 | carbon emissions, climate change, climatology, global warming, greenhouse gases
The previous year marked the highest temperature ever recorded, with the ten warmest years occurring within the last decade. Additionally, the concentration of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the atmosphere reached its peak in 800,000 years, as stated in a UN report.
Last week, in their yearly State of the Climate report, the World Meteorological Organization highlighted clear signs of a planet experiencing escalating warmth, including oceans reaching unprecedented hot levels, increasing sea levels, and glaciers melting faster than ever before.
“Earth is sending out stronger warning signs,” stated António Guterres, the UN Secretary-General. He pointed out that the report indicates it’s still feasible to cap global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.8 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. “It is crucial for leaders to take action to achieve this—capitalizing on the advantages of affordable, clean renewable energy sources for both their citizens and economic growth,” he emphasized.
The report linked the warming to human activities such as burning coal, oil, and natural gas, with a lesser contribution from the naturally occurring El Niño weather event. The El Niño began in June 2023 and lasted until mid-2024, contributing additional warmth and aiding in breaking temperature records. By 2024, global temperatures briefly exceeded the 1.5°C threshold for the first time ever; however, scientists consider this milestone met only when Earth’s average temperature remains consistently above that mark over an extended duration.
According to the report, global warming has exacerbated severe weather conditions, resulting in record-high displacements over the past 16 years, intensifying food shortages, and causing substantial financial loss. The document noted that in 2024, there were a minimum of 151 unprecedented extreme climate incidents.
“This serves as a wakeup call that we are escalating the dangers to our lives, economies, and the Earth itself,” stated Celeste Saulo, who is the Secretary-General of WMO.
The report’s warnings come as the United States President Donald Trump has issued a series of rollbacks on climate commitments and cast doubt on climate science. The U.S. is the world’s second biggest polluter currently and the largest emitter of greenhouse gases historically. It’s left some worried that other countries will also have less ambitious targets as a result.
“The science is conclusive. Efforts to conceal climate science from the public won’t prevent us from experiencing the severe consequences of climate change,” stated Brenda Ekwurzel from the non-profit organization, Union of Concerned Scientists, based in the United States.
Vanessa Nakate, a Ugandan climate advocate, also cautioned that “the more we postpone reducing emissions, the more severe the consequences will become.”
“Pursuing the elimination of fossil fuels is not optional; it is a critical measure in addressing the crisis happening right now,” she stated.
