The Importance of Adaptation

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We are talking here about being at crossroads. If we managed to very quickly mitigate, then we had potentially commit to sea level rise of 2 to 3 metres. So adaptation also has a timescale issue. Adaptation that is fit today may not be fit in a warmer world. An adaptation that does flood protection for a river might be fine at today's climate, but at 1.5 or 2 degrees may become unfit for purpose. It will require a full concerted effort by governments, businesses and actors across all parts of society.

In March 2023, the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a synthesis report warning that the world needs to act fast to reduce emissions. The synthesis report is likely to be the go-to document for many stakeholders setting their climate policies and plans over the next several years.

In this episode of ESG Insider, we hear from two authors of the IPCC report: Dr. Aditi Mukherji, who is Director of the Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Impact Area Platform at the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). CGIAR is a global research partnership that works with scientists around the world on agricultural innovation and is dedicated to transforming food, land and water systems in a climate crisis.

And we speak to Dr. Peter Thorne, who is Professor in Physical Geography at Maynooth University in Ireland. He is also Director of the Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units group at the university.

"The future we write depends upon the emissions choices we make today and in the coming decades," Peter tells us. He says that the world has the tools to stop global warming, but this will require a concerted effort across all parts of society. "We should get to net zero as quickly as we can. That is the very best, most resilient way that we can move forward," he says.

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