Earth Today | Scientist champions Earth Day focus: Invest in our planet
Published:Thursday | April 28, 2022 | 12:06 AM
EARTH DAY 2022 may have come and gone, but its call to action remains: ‘Invest in our planet’.
The reminder has come from climate scientist and head of the Physics Department at The University of the West Indies, Mona, Dr Tannecia Stephenson.
For her, investing in the planet means investing in renewables and energy-efficient technologies, as the world looks to blunt the trauma of human-induced climate change associated with the greenhouse gas emissions that fuel the warming of the planet.
The warming, in turn, presents a range of threats and impacts, including sea level rise and the associated coastal erosion; extreme weather events, including hurricanes and droughts; as well as related increases in vector-borne diseases, and water and food security challenges.
“Investments should also support our improved monitoring of our natural systems, for example, forest cover, water and air quality, weather, sea level rise; ocean temperatures; and investments in new technologies that hold the potential for increased efficiencies and lower greenhouse gas emissions,” Stephenson told The Gleaner.
RESEARCH SUPPORT
Also important, she said, is greater support for research within the Caribbean context “to enable the generation of information specific to Jamaica and the region to guide those developing policy and making decisions critical to the country and region”.
Also on the list of priorities is investment in the ‘race’ to net zero emissions by 2050. Net zero is the point at which the amount of greenhouse gases going into the atmosphere are balanced by the amount that is being removed in order to restrain the ongoing warming of the planet.
Stephenson said this is especially important for small-island developing states, which need the warming of the planet capped at 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, given their extreme vulnerability to climate impacts.
“Globally and as small islands, we are already challenged with a global warming of 1.1 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial (1850-1900) levels. So even efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius represents a compromise and will still have ‘real’ implications for us, while at the same time reducing the loss and damage we would need to contend with, in comparison to a two or three degrees warmer world. It is crucial that ‘deep reductions’ in greenhouse gas emissions be realised sooner rather than later if we hope for a sustainable future,” she said.
And all stakeholders, she insisted, have a role.
“Action is required from all of us, for example, phasing out use of fossil fuels, decreasing our energy demand, increasing investment in low-emission technology or infrastructure, taking care of forests, and improving water management. Let us play our part in the global response to the climate change,” she added.
Organisers of Earth Day 2022, celebrated on April 2022, also noted the need to act and to do so collaboratively and with urgency.
“We need to act boldly, innovate broadly, and implement equitably. It’s going to take all of us. All in. Businesses, governments and citizens – everyone accounted for, and everyone accountable; a partnership for the planet,” reads the website www.earthday.org.
“And while there is still time to solve the climate crisis, time to choose BOTH a prosperous and sustainable future, and time to restore nature and build a healthy planet for our children and their children, time is short. This is the moment to change it all – the business climate, the political climate, and how we take action on climate. Now is the time for the unstoppable courage to preserve and protect our health, our families, our livelihoods … together, we must Invest In Our Planet,” it encouraged.