The time has come to take action.
The planet, as a living entity, functions just like us. When the temperature rises, all its functions are affected, much like when we get a fever. To what temperature can we take the planet without it falling ill and dragging all of humanity into a crisis?
Michael Wadlegh, scientist, doctor, filmmaker (with Oscars and Grammys to his credit), in short an exceptional human being, in his visit to Lima to illuminate COP20 with his presence, visited Libélula and gave us the answer: 2 degrees Celsius, above the average temperature of the pre-industrial era, is the limit. Any temperature above this could lead the planet to such a climatic imbalance that even for scientists, it is difficult to pinpoint. What is certain is that it will be humans, those who depend on the climate to live, who will suffer most from the consequences of this disease.
What can we do to avoid this possible crisis? Well, just as we use a thermometer to control our fever, we must have a measuring factor. If scientists agree that it is Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions that raise the temperature of the planet, we need to know how much we can continue to load our atmosphere with these gases. According to Michael and the scientific experts who study this matter, we should not add more than 790 Giga Tons of Carbon (GtC) in our atmosphere, otherwise, we will pass the 2°C threshold.
What puts us in a high-risk situation is that to date we have already accumulated 543 GtC in our atmosphere, in other words, we only have 247 GtC left to push the planet out of balance. At the current rate of emissions, in just 21 years, we will be facing the effects of our negligence.
In conclusion, there is no more time to keep talking, it is time to take action or suffer the consequences. We provide you with Michael's presentation, loaded with figures and information so that you can get your hands on the position of science on the climate debate.