Introducing Climate change – where to?

RNZ science communicator Dr Claire Concannon explores global actions for climate change in the Voice of the Sea Ice series. This sixth and final episode asks what the world is doing to combat climate change – and is New Zealand doing its part?

Transcript

Dr Claire Concannon

Donald Trump has pulled the US out of the Paris Agreement – again. Will this have a big impact on greenhouse gas emissions or has a ship already sailed on the age of fossil fuels?

Kia ora, I’m Claire Concannon, and in the last episode of Voice of the Sea Ice, we ask what the world and New Zealand are doing about climate change.

The Paris Agreement is the international pact between all the countries in the world – well, except for three and now America, four – to keep global temperatures below 2° of warming since pre-industrial times.

Countries set their own targets and must report on their policies, plans and emissions. It’s not perfect and the current efforts won’t keep us below that 2° goal, but it has had some impact and there are signs that momentum is shifting.

The cost of solar panels and batteries have plummeted, making them more attractive to invest in. At the same time, some banks are backing away from fossil fuel companies that don’t have plans to transition to clean energy. While Donald Trump might be backing coal, it’s now a more expensive and risky business than some forms of renewable energy.

Back at home, New Zealand has yet to finalise our plan to meet our 2030 target, which by design includes paying another country to reduce their emissions. And our 2035 target has garnered the criticism of not being ambitious enough. Scientists continue to stress that urgent action is required. They’re encouraging the public to put pressure on councils and governments to do their bit to safeguard our planet’s future.

Learn more by listening to the final episode of the Voice of the Sea Ice podcast.

Acknowledgements

This video is courtesy of RNZ. It is from the Voice of the Sea Ice podcast series by Dr Claire Concannon. The series was made with travel support from the Antarctica New Zealand Community Engagement Programme.