Climate Sustainability: The Journey from Rio to Copenhagen Jeffrey Barber Copenhagen Climate Exchange 3 December 2009

The journey from crisis to sustainability

Global temperatures are rising …

…with rising carbon emissions Source: Global Carbon Project 2009; Le Quéré et al. 2009, Nature Geoscience Sink Source CO 2 flux (Pg C y -1 ) fossil fuel emissions deforestation atmospheric CO 2 ocean land

…from a range of sources

… with major impacts on our world

We are driving ourselves to the brink of collapse

Leaving this for our children to confront Climate change Ecosystem collapse Economic insecurity

Trying to understand the consequences

Piper Alpha Bhopal Love Canal 3 Mile Island Global 2000 Rpt Chernobyl Hanford Danube Massey Our Stolen Future Seveso Amoco Cadiz Baia Mare Bangladesh arsenic Exxon Valdez Ozone hole The evidence accumulates …

…as our ecological footprint grows

We look for answers

We look for innovative solutions

1995 COP-1 (Berlin) 1996 COP-2 (Geneva) 1997 COP-3 (Kyoto) 1998 COP-4 (Buenos Aires) 1999 COP-5 (Bonn) 2000 COP-6 (The Hague) 2001 COP-6 bis (Bonn) 2001 COP-7 (Marrakech) 2002 COP-8 (New Delhi) 2003 COP-9 (Milan) 2004 COP-10 (Buenos Aires) 2005 COP-11 (Montreal) 2006 COP-12 (Nairobi) 2007 COP-13 (Bali) 2008 COP-14 (Poznan) 2009 COP-15 (Copenhagen) st IPCC Assessment Rpt 1992 IPCC Supplementary Rpt st IPCC Assessment Rpt rd IPCC Assessment Rpt th IPCC Assessment Rpt New climate treaty? … and we talk to each other

We make plans and proposals

We look for leadership However, this is just one step in a series of steps and actions to reduce national and global carbon emissions. We each have a leadership role to play in these steps forward. This is part of our journey to sustainability. The major challenge is not simply to “reduce emissions” but for us to transform the system of production and consumption that generates them. Right now, to commit to global and national targets to reduce global emissions, to establish a binding Treaty.

Changing the system of production and consumption

To lower GHG emissions, we need to change the production/consumption cycle…

…in each economic sector.

10 Year Framework of Programs for Sustainable Consumption and Production (CSD18-19) “Develop a domestic policy framework that will encourage a shift to more sustainable patterns of production and consumption.” Sustainable development and climate change

We only have one planet to get this right

We need more than a climate treaty, we need a global transformation To build a sustainable global economy. Low-carbon. Protecting the ecosystems upon which we all depends. It must also be fair, providing economic security and improving the quality of life for everyone. This is the challenge of “sustainable development.”