Climate scientists have been ignored for 40 years – but we must start listening now

Analysis: 11,000 scientists from 153 countries warn that continuing to do nothing will cause ‘untold human suffering’, writes Phoebe Weston

The letter, which has been signed by 11,000 scientists, is pleading for change after decades of inactivity (Getty)

People in power have known about climate change for 40 years and done nothing. In 1979, scientists from 50 nations met at the First World Climate Conference in Geneva and discussed what they should do.

World leaders listened but basically nothing happened – more “immediate” political concerns took priority – and emissions continued to spiral into unknown territory.

With every passing year, this environmental catastrophe becomes harder to deal with. Now 11,000 scientists from 153 countries warn that if governments continue to do nothing rising global emissions will cause “untold human suffering”.

This year has been bad for the climate – we’ve had record melting in the poles, successive heatwaves across Europe and set a string of new temperatures records. But these changes were not unexpected.

“We have had satellite measurements and climate models for nearly three decades – a generation – and we are still reporting the changes as if they are news,” said Professor Andrew Shepherd from the University of Leeds when talking about the loss of ice as discussed in the IPCC report on the cryosphere.

This latest letter, which is published in BioScience, outlines six areas in which we can take immediate steps to slow the effects of a warming planet: stop using fossil fuels; cut emissions of pollutants like methane and soot; stop chopping down forests; stop eating so much meat; stop exploiting ecosystems and stabilise the population.

Scientists say they want to state “clearly and unequivocally that planet Earth is facing a climate emergency”.

Unfortunately it looks like we’re moving in the opposite direction in many ways – people are eating more meat, flying more and consuming more “stuff” than ever before.

In 2018, the IPCC report warned that we faced major environmental catastrophe within our lifetimes, and potentially as soon as 2040. It’s no wonder that a few months ago, leading scientists published another letter saying researchers should be allowed to cry as they watch the world being ruined before their eyes.

“We’re documenting destruction of world’s most beautiful ecosystems, it’s impossible to be detached,” said Tim Gordon, lead author of the letter and a marine biologist from the University of Exeter.

Almost 70 per cent of British people want urgent political action, but there is a growing gap between announcements on climate change and the implementation of policies.

There are a few glimmers of hope – schoolchildren striking, the rise of Extinction Rebellion and Greta Thunberg.

But we’re getting increasingly short on time and the alarmist nature of this letter is a measure of how desperate the situation is.

This is not a drill – the climate crisis is here and time really is running out.