To worry that the planet is heating faster than we have been led to expect and whether we can cope?

[100thingstoknowaboutspace]

I understand that extreme weather events, including spikes in temperatures and longer heatwaves, are a result of smaller incremental rises in global temperature. But the rate of heat records and large jumps in the temperatures during those spikes and heatwaves that we have experienced during the last 10 years feels off the scale for me, and I am wondering how we can actually cope if it continues at this pace? Climate experts talk about 2 degrees warming by mid century, but if we experience heatwaves that are 5 or more degrees hotter or go on longer than this one, I genuinely don't understand how we will cope. At the moment my flat is only just tolerable - with every measure of cooling I could think of. A few degrees more, and survival is literally threatened. Whereas humans may be able to cope with 5, 10 etc degrees lower, as it is easier to heat up, it seems we are reaching the edge of survivability in terms of being able to stay cool enough to maintain life. Not only here in the UK obviously.

I do believe there is still action that we as individuals and as a country (which in turn may impact other countries) can take, but I am scared that things are worse than even experts, in their carefully hedged or caveated statements and predictions, cause us to believe. I am worried I won't be able to keep my child safe as they grow up.

Grateful if anyone can talk me down from this climate anxiety - and also, grateful for insight about what might be most effective for us to do.

Not having children is by far the most cost effective means of reducing carbon emissions.

And it's not just carbon emissions, a lower population also reduces all other types of environmental impact from intensive farming, micro plastics, rubbish pollution, deforestation, marine pollution and over fishing etc etc.

It would also be economically beneficial- same resources with less people to share it around. In the case of the UK it doesn't matter if this is through lower levels of migration or less births or both. I always shake my head when I see posts saying that we need to grow the UK population in order to grow the economy, when the opposite is the case.

But as you correctly point out this is not a popular opinion on MN and it's far easier to blame big business.

Poppycock. Even in the 1970s scientific climate consensus predicted global warming. As for most of the planet will be underwater by 2025!🤯

Maybe you should base your understanding in actual evidence, rather than movies you've seen.🙈

Well, the last resort is using dead humans as food. I'm sure our industry would create something palatable.

Most of our planet IS underwater

The fact is mankind has fucked up and I think its possible that the generation who will see the planet burn have already been born.

Even on a recycling thread recently people were proud of not lifting a finger because apparently their actions are irrelevant.

I haven't heard any interviews with scientists who are surprised by the current heat.

Yes, we are all going to die - that is true for sure! But I can't tell if you are predicting the end of days imminently or just stating that everybody has to die at some point.

Your question about whether it is ethical to have children when you know they will suffer is an interesting one. For me, I think that suffering and hardship are an inevitable part of life (well, Bhudda said it first tbh). You certainly shouldn't have children only because you believe their lives will be guaranteed to be comfortable. That is, and never had been, true.

There is no concensus among scientists that children born in the uk today will die imminently due to climate change. But if you really believe the end is nigh, I am sure there is not a lot I can do to deter you.

I will continue to do what I can for humans and the planet, but it is certainly a lot easier to say "no point, we're all doomed anyway", which is what you seem to be doing? Possibly I have misread

Probably just shape it like sausages and no one would really be able to tell anyway,

And lack of drinking water!!!

I applaud people who choose not to have children for the sake of the planet and this is said a lot on here. I have no idea why anyone thinks this is a new or original opinion on mumsnet or anywhere else

Yanbu. It is happening, it's here, it's getting rapidly worse, your anxiety is completely justified.

The Met Office have modelled that with a 2 degree rise overall (we already surpassed 1.5 degrees in 2024), by 2050 the UK will be getting heatwaves going up to 43-45 degrees. As well as a lot more storms and flooding.

Not to mention what's happening elsewhere in the world and the knock-on effects eg large scale migration, food supply etc.

And the UK government wants to allow the "Rosebank" oil field to be developed, creating vastly more emissions than many countries put together. Google Stop Rosebank for more details and something you CAN do.

Good data there.

And as usual, many people are only registering the peaks. We don't notice if a February is on average 2 deg warmer. But the scientists do.

And I think this has been part of the problem. Because the nations in the tropics who get the worst effects of climate change have less power to influence global action than those nations in the temperate zones. By the time the folk in the temperate zones are seeing it, the tropics are nearing the cusp.

Hate to provide some facts, but that's exactly what was predicted

https://iseethics.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/the-cooling-world-newsweek-april-28-1975.pdf

https://time.com/archive/6878023/another-ice-age/

As for the more recent predictions - do you really want me to post a screenshot of Greta Thunberg's tweet which she later deleted about the world being under water by the mid 2020s?

Thought not!

One thing is sure, on a personal level people will have to remain lucky. That's all there is to it. Governments are not going to help.

We currently have a government hell bent on sticking up houses and solar on agricultural land to house an increase in the population that we can neither feed or guarantee water for. We should have been looking at decreasing the population,not increasing it by 15 million. We should have been spending money on retro fitting solar shade to schools, hospitals etc, not paying out welfare benefits to people we didn't need to have here.

The wankers we have elected over the last 50 years have spent all that time feathering their own nests and trying to become members of the global elite.

If people aren't angry, they should be.

80% + of materials in solar panels can be recovered, recycled and/or repurposed.

How can you say that when the evidence is literally all around us?

We could spare a thought for small countries which are in the process of simply ceasing to exist; their islands are vanishing, or have vanished, because the water level round them has risen (on account of climate change has started to accelerate).

https://sciencesensei.com/30-islands-disappearing-now-and-10-already-lost-forever-due-to-climate-change/

We also need to improve passive cooling. Less tarmac, concrete and astroturf; more trees.

There is already a dystopian novel about cannibalism in a world where human flesh is reared, it's called 'Tender is the Flesh'.

It was a minority viewpoint amongst climate scientists in the 1970s, when the consus was for global warming. By the early 1980s it was already known as the Global Cooling Myth.

journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/bams/89/9/2008bams2370_1.xml

Those in denial about the material impact this will have on our lives wont be as relaxed when we in the UK are regularly facing water scarcity, heat related shut downs and significant food system failures. This will happen within short decades. Everyone telling us to relax about it now are part of the problem, because no one in power is being forced to prepare properly on our behalf. So much more action could be taken now on a systemic level to protect us heading into a hotter, drier and less productive future. But just go on denying...help us all just drift into a worse future.

See also Soilent Green and The Road!

Let's hope it doesn't come to that of course! But it does come up a lot in dystopia future movies and books

I absolutely share your worries OP.

Yeah absolutely, but I was sort of expecting fundamental changes to my life by 2030, which is now pretty close. I can see and understand the changes we have now, I just expected worse by this juncture. I’m not looking at the weather and going “no one warned me about this!”. But I have been making changes (not on any meaningful scale, because I can’t) around having solar panels, air conditioning, off grid essentials, electric car, reduced consumption, offset of air travel because of the awareness I have of the issue.

I agree hardship and suffering is a part of life but if you knew the suffering was going to be unimaginably hard caused by us, would you want children?

We all want a comfortable life, we want to consume whatever we like if we have the means. Is anyone willing to give up the things that contribute to climate change, when they make their life worth living?