STATEMENT ON THE RELEASE OF THE IPCC AR6 WORKING GROUP II REPORT
The global scientific community sounded a wake-up call in today’s IPCC report, echoed by all world nations: widespread and severe climate damages are hitting us now, earlier than previously predicted, and we are not prepared to contend with the changes we have already wrought and even less so the changes that will come if we continue to load the atmosphere with carbon pollution.
Even worse, while changes to our climate are and will hit us all hard, they fall hardest on the most vulnerable communities and countries who have done least to pollute our planet. We have exposed low income and people of color all around the globe and at home in the United States to the ravages of rising seas, more ferocious storms, extreme heat, drought, and raging wildfires and we are not investing enough in ways to protect them.
The report comes out one day before President Biden will give his first State of the Union and as Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine sends shockwaves through our global stability and our energy systems that are far too reliant on volatile gas and oil supplies.
The solution that delivers the lowest cost energy, provides security against price volatility, and answers the challenge of the climate crisis is one and the same – rapidly transitioning our economy to run on clean power. Investing in a clean energy economy is how we build millions of good-paying jobs. Wind and solar are not only cheaper than the fossil fuel alternatives, they are healthier. Electrifying transportation is also similarly resilient against supply chain disruptions and oil price spikes.
Professor Debra Roberts, one of the two Working Group II Co-Chairs, remarked in today’s IPCC press conference that "our report is very clear - it indicates this has to be a whole of society response, not a single individual, community or government can opt out, we all need to opt in to the solution…it requires all of us to be playing our part in different ways but they must be integrated…it is a really strong call for all of us to start doing the heavy lifting that is going to ensure a just equitable world and ensure that we have a sustainable planet for many generations to come." The All In model is answering that call but we need our federal government, and particularly our congress to answer it as well.
We have an opportunity already before congress to make the investments that will help us both wean ourselves off fossil fuels and build our resiliency to a rapidly changing climate. The Senate must not delay any further on passing a budget package with climate strong provisions. The IPCC report says we have 10 years to make the necessary choices to secure our future, or face a climate that is so altered that our choices are made for us. We still have time, and we mustn’t waste a moment of it.
- The America Is All In Organizing Team