On March 21, 2023, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published its latest report with policy and scientific conclusions. It is based on various preliminary reports on climate change. For the report, new models and analytical methods were used to provide even more precise evidence of the damage caused by fossil energies and previously underestimated greenhouse gases(see also our article from February 2022).
The current calculations show that the net-zero target will very likely be missed by 2050 if countries do not immediately make their climate policies more ambitious and effective. If we continue as we are, warming will increase by up to 3.5 degrees by 2100. Global emissions must start falling in 2025, and be reduced by 43 percent by 2030 to reach net zero between 2040 and 2050.
Rich countries like Switzerland bear responsibility
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has put the scientific facts into clear words:
Rich countries like Switzerland must reach net zero emissions by 2040.
Switzerland, as a consumer country and a member state of the Climate Convention, is called upon to act now. Our ecological footprint per capita and year is twice the average. Our financial institutions and pension funds are still investing in fossil fuel companies. The budget we allocate to international climate finance is unworthy of a rich country considering the existing and future huge challenge posed by climate change.
Climate change hits the weakest
The increase in global temperature has devastating consequences and climate catastrophes for people and the environment. Every degree of global warming leads to more poverty and hunger.
SWISSAID is involved in countries that are already severely affected by the climate crisis and recurring climate disasters such as droughts, floods and storms. Women are particularly burdened: there is enormous pressure on them. After all, it is they who are mainly responsible for feeding their families. Like Djimie Awane, a female farmer in Chad who is powerless in the face of climate change and has to watch helplessly as her harvest has steadily deteriorated in recent years.
In recent years we felt a big change in the climate. Because of the little rainfall, we do not harvest much. I used to harvest 20 bags of peanuts, now it is only 10 or 8 bags. The harvests are very poor compared to past years.
Djimie Awane, farmer in Chad
Our goal is to help local people be prepared for such events. Thanks to alternative agricultural approaches such as agroecology, they can diversify risks and preserve their soils despite climate changes.
Agroecology can help reduce emissions and sequester and store carbon dioxide in soils. Agroecology also benefits biodiversity in rural areas, which is critical for climate change adaptation.
YES to the Climate Protection Act on June 18, 2023
On June 18, we have the chance to put Switzerland on a climate course by voting YES to the Climate Protection Act. The Climate Alliance, of which SWISSAID is a member, launched the campaign for a YES to the Climate Protection Act on March 23, 2023. Together, we want to protect what is important to us. With a YES vote on June 18, 20223, Switzerland will take an important step forward in climate protection. For Switzerland. For all of us.
