The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concluded in Brussels on Thursday that climate change is inevitable, adaptation to it is critical and that those who contributed least to the problem will suffer the most.
"Even if, by some miracle, we could stop emitting greenhouse gases today, we will still experience climate change in the next few decades, making adaptation unavoidable. On the other hand, without any effort in mitigation we are likely to reach a level of climate change that makes adaptation impossible for some ecosystems, while for people it could involve very high social and economic costs." Richard Klein, coordinator of climate policy research at the Stockholm Environment Institute and a coordinating lead author of the IPCC.
One of the political dilemmas of climate policy is the fact that the costs and benefits of climate change are not distributed equally around the world. Saleemul Huq, director of the climate change programme of the International Institute for Environment and Development, and also a coordinating lead author, points out that for some countries, particularly the poorest countries in Africa and the small island developing states, adaptation is more important than mitigation. For countries like China, India and Brazil, the combination of the two strategies is essential, according to Huq.
See full Press Release.
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