Shocked Temp Agency
Nov 17, 2025
Katharine Hayhoe, a leading climate scientist and professor, discusses the uncertain future of climate change driven by human choices. She explores how our decisions shape projections and policy outcomes, emphasizing the importance of remaining vigilant despite recent progress. Katharine highlights the complexity of climate narratives and calls for personal engagement to connect climate action with hope. She also shares insights on the energy transition and the political challenges that could impede progress, underscoring the global inequality of climate impacts.
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Human Choices Drive Climate Futures
- Human decisions are the single largest source of uncertainty in climate projections.
- That uncertainty is empowering because collective choices determine whether we end up in worse or better futures.
California Study Led To Policy Change
- Hayhoe led a California study comparing higher vs lower futures and influenced the state's first greenhouse gas limit executive order.
- That policy cited her study and showed scenarios can motivate real political action.
We're Better Off Than A Decade Ago
- Current policies in 2025 put the world on a medium-to-higher warming path near ~3°C by century's end.
- That trajectory is much better than the ~5°C path projected a decade earlier, showing real progress.