Peter Martin, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
30 of the 50 economists surveyed want a carbon price of the kind introduced by Julia Gillard in 2012 and abolished by Tony Abbott in 2014. Several say there’s little “time left to act seriously”.
H. Damon Matthews, Concordia University and Glen Peters, Center for International Climate and Environment Research - Oslo
The clock tracks global emissions and temperature data, and uses the most recent five-year emissions trend to estimate how much time is left until global warming reaches the 1.5 C threshold.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison is poised to announce Australia will adopt a target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. But it’s too little, too late.
What might sound like small changes – temperatures another tenth of a degree warmer, sea level a few centimeters higher – have big consequences for the world around us.
Consider Ireland. Like New Zealand, it has high agricultural emissions and a poor climate track record so far, but it has adopted much stronger targets to cut emissions by 51% between 2018 and 2030.
Alistair Woodward, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Kirsty Wild, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau, and Rhys Jones, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Electric cars are being touted as the best way to reduce emissions from transport. But a climate policy that relies on individuals paying for new technology runs the risk of aggravating inequities.
Several countries have made pledges to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to zero by mid-century. But new research finds the remaining carbon budget will be depleted before we get there.
The Paris Agreement set countries on a path to limit global warming. Five years on, some progress has been made, but not enough. Decarbonizing the economy will take leadership and imagination.