Did we just live through a lost decade of climate action?

Hey readers, this week we reflected on climate action over the past decade — the science, the public awakening, the action, and inaction...

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This decade was likely the hottest on record. Emissions continue to rise and the science is becoming increasingly stark. The climate crisis is officially here. Yet, governments continue to drag their feet. So, as a new decade begins, one glaring question is: Can the world make up for this lost decade of climate action?

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What do you think? We'd love to hear from you.

Cheers, Laura and Kyla

The Lost Decade: How We Awoke To Climate Change Only To Squander Every Chance To Act

We may look back on the years 2009 to 2019 as the “lost decade” — a time when the world awoke to the reality of climate change only to squander the chance to take the action needed to tackle it. Now, many scientists fear the targets required to avoid catastrophe are slipping out of reach.

On Dec. 15, politicians from 194 countries wrapped up the 25th United Nations climate conference in Madrid. But in an outcome youth activists have described as “another year of failure,” the only thing nations seemed to agree on was that there’s an “urgent need” to act.

“Never have I seen such a disconnect between what the science requires and what the climate negotiations are delivering in terms of meaningful action,” said Alden Meyer, strategy chief at the Union of Concerned Scientists. For 25 years, the world has been trying to figure out how to tackle fossil fueled-global warming. And now it’s a crisis.

As this decade — likely the hottest on record — comes to a close and another begins, one glaring question is: Can the world make up for this lost time? Thousands of scientists recently declared a climate emergency, and the U.N. has given the world just over a decade to act. With the clock ticking closer to midnight, it’s worth reflecting on how we got here and what we might learn from the past 10 years.

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