Oxfam reaction to the IPCC’s Working Group III report on climate change mitigation

“This IPCC report pulls no punches about the urgency of the crisis we all face. The bleak and brutal truth about global warming is this: barring action on a sweeping scale, humanity faces worsening hunger, disease, economic collapse, mass migration of people and unbearable heat. It’s not about taking our foot off the accelerator anymore —it’s about slamming on the brakes.

“As COP26 President, the UK government must continue efforts to bring countries back to the table and ensure the commitment of limiting global temperatures to 1.5°C is upheld. Any further delay risks missing the rapidly closing window to secure a liveable future which the IPCC warned of just one month ago.

“Carbon emissions have bounced back to pre-pandemic levels. We need to stop new oil and gas fields in the UK and instead accelerate the switch to renewables which are cheap, secure, and clean forms of energy. At a time when we should be moving away from fossil fuels, the push to increase production due to the crisis in Ukraine is short-sighted and will mean backtracking on vital climate commitments.

“People living in poverty who have done the least to contribute to climate change are suffering first and worst. Farmers in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia have lost crops and entire herds of livestock to an exceptionally long and severe drought. Millions of people in East Africa are now on the brink of a hunger catastrophe.

“This monumental climate report is distressing but not surprising. The IPCC and other scientists have been warning governments of this danger for decades. Our future lies in the decisions we make today. We must clamp down on emissions now or face more catastrophic climate disasters, season after season.”