IoS 2060: Tsunami Horror Hits Britain

Nations have slacked off in reducing energy use and efforts to combat global warming. Nations meeting in Nairobi on setting new targets for pollution reduction will hear three reports – the Stern Report in the UK on economics and global warming, the United Nations report on national efforts and an Institute on Public Policy Research report from the UK that suggests the need for immediate policy changes. After reducing pollutants throughout the 1990s, the world’s developed nations reversed course after 2000 with an increase in greenhouse emissions. That was despite reductions negotiated with the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. But with countries like the US and Australia not signing on to the treaty, the international agenda made global warming a low priority, despite dire predictions of weather, health and agriculture crises. Developed nations have the technology to control pollutants, and costs will only increase with every year of delay. “The Independent” offers a sample of possible headlines on future crises – from extinction of the polar bears to massive flooding in London – with the hope that world leaders can demonstrate leadership and develop policies to thwart the dangerous trends of climate change. – YaleGlobal