IT is important to remember what the 1.5 degree Celsius goal current being discussed at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt is all about. It’s a tipping point, beyond which the science points to collapsing ecosystems and expensive adaptation. 

Think about it this way — we have a global carbon budget which allows for some 400 gigatonnes of CO2 to be emitted between now and the rest of the century. And we are currently at a burn rate of north of 40 gigatonnes per year, which gives us less than 10 years.

So are we keeping 1.5 degrees alive out at this year’s COP or are we pulling the plug on the shonky looking life support that’s been constructed and investing in factor 300 sun cream?

Well, there are some positives. Shipping has been a relative high profile focus so far at COP this year and it’s going to get more attention next week.

But does that buzz represent progress?

We need to stop thinking that making promises is progress. At this at this stage we should have been talking about action, we need to start doing some things here.

On this week’s edition of the podcast we are talking COP27 with:

• Sturla Henriksen, special advisor, Ocean, to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC)
  Stephen Cotton, general secretary of the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF)
  Charles Haskell, decarbonisation program manager at Lloyd’s Register