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Forests Are Losing Their Ability to Hold Carbon | A new USDA report finds forests could become a major emitter of carbon by 2070
(www.scientificamerican.com)
Discussion of climate, how it is changing, activism around that, the politics, and the energy systems change we need in order to stabilize things.
As a starting point, the burning of fossil fuels, and to a lesser extent deforestation and release of methane are responsible for the warming in recent decades:
How much each change to the atmosphere has warmed the world:
Recommended actions to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the near future:
Anti-science, inactivism, and unsupported conspiracy theories are not ok here.
Jfc.
I'm seriously losing all hope for a future where my grandkids are safe. Or my kids.
I believe that you need optimism to be an effective advocate for the future. Does anybody have anything hopeful regarding climate change? I'm at the bottom of the barrel here and not really finding anything
Basically, if we stop adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, temperatures stabilize.
The US actually passed climate legislation last year, and it looks like the renewables build-out is going to proceed quickly enough to start displacing fossil fuels over the next few years
Positive reports tend to look like modest incremental improvements, but we've been getting a lot of those.
Thanks, I really do appreciate it. I will say that the
if
in that first link is doing an Atlas' level of work, though, and it's the point where my optimism has dropped the lowest...or myself.
Take action if you can. I wont tell you what that looks like for you, but decide what you think will be the most effective and do it.
For some thats individual action. Planting a tree, composting, biking more, etc.
For others its political engagement. Protests, petitions, running for local office.
For others its civil disobedience and other resistance actions. Think big profile stories right now involving more drastic action (extinction rebellion, etc).
I will of course tell you that last category can involve taking potentially profound legal risks.
I will not tell you which I think is the most effective. You need to decide what you think and what you are willing to do.
But take action. At this stage take action because we need more action and doing something about it is the only sure way we can have hope things will get better.