This past summer (2022), the train tracks in Battersea, London caught on fire in a season of record breaking heat for the the U.K. Around the same time, Pakistan experienced devastating flooding that impacted 1 in 7 citizens, while the beds of the Yangtze River were exposed due to drought in China.
The impacts of climate change are now visible and tangible. It comes as no surprise that the past eight years have been the warmest on record.
While events and trends like these are easy to understand and communicate, the rich and decades-long body of science on climate change is sometimes not as approachable.
Effective climate action requires an understanding of where we currently stand, what and who is driving climate change, the potential futures we could realise, and entry-points for impactful intervention. Distilling and absorbing the wealth of reports and research on these topics is no small feat for any concerned party.
Climate 101
At 2150, we realise that understanding the problem is essential to solving it. That’s why we’ve put together our ‘Climate 101’ briefing — a primer that contextualises the latest research on climate change, with the goal of providing essential knowledge to support discussion and meaningful action.
Climate 101 shows that we are locked into further future warming, even with a transition to net-zero. However, we are still very much in control of how much future warming we will experience. We can decide to see the net-zero transition as an opportunity, or forfeit to the harsh realities of climate change.
Our window to act is rapidly closing, though, where every 0.1ºC of warming above current levels and the likely overshoot of the 1.5ºC target has significant consequences. Our remaining ‘carbon budget’ is limited, as shown in the table below.
Despite such a dire outlook, 2150 sees immense opportunity and potential for meaningful and productive climate action across all economic sectors. Knowledge is power, and we hope ‘Climate 101’ helps you understand the unique position humans and our Earth are in, the sources of emissions and our potential climate futures; all while showing comprehensive and targeted action is necessary to solve this crisis.
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2150 is a venture capital firm investing in technology companies that seek to sustainably reimagine and reshape the urban environment. 2150’s investment thesis focuses on major unsolved problems across what it calls the ‘Urban Stack’, which comprises every element of the built environment, from the way our cities are designed, constructed and powered, to the way people live, work and are cared for. Find out more at www.2150.vc
