Polluters Pay — So Why Are We Footing the $100 Trillion Bill?

In this Climate Genn episode I am speaking with climate analyst Genevieve Walker about how we are not preparing for the dangerously extreme climate we have created for ourselves. Genevieve points out that we are continuing to pump out the highest volume of emissions, while incrementally preparing our infrastructure for a climate that we have already said good-bye to. A note on the terminology. Genevieve uses the terminology of climate science reporting to describe pathways to the future. In particular there is the SSP1, SSP3 and SSP5, where SSP stands for Shared Socioeconomic Pathways. These translate roughly as the following: “SSP1 – Safer future: Some climate disruption, but many impacts remain manageable.” “SSP3 – Divided world: Heat, floods and crop failures become widespread; many communities cannot adapt.”“SSP5– Fossil‑fuel dominated world where we were not meant to go: Multiple systems fail – major cities, food systems and ecosystems face catastrophic stress.” Remember, that last one is SSP5.With many of the poorest, most vulnerable people suffering already, it is worth adding that we, in places like northwest Europe, are no where near ready for the dangerous extremes coming our way. Please do share your thoughts in the comments - I do try to read and reply to as much as possible. Thank you to all who watch, comment, share and subscribe. It is really appreciated. You can subscribe to see episodes early and support this work.