In light of the recent and shocking news that the latest IPCC report brings, now more than ever sustainability leadership is essential. Lehigh will continue to make sustainable change and build a campus culture that emphasizes earth stewardship, equity, and economic stability.
The IPCC is the United Nation’s official Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is an organizing body that assesses science related to climate change. The panel, established in 1988, is designed to provide world policymakers with regular assessments on the state of climate change, its predicted future and its predicted impacts.
The latest report, released Oct. 8, issued dire warnings with the most drastic data yet that supports human-induced climate change and its far-reaching impacts. The authors of the IPCC say the planet will reach the crucial threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels by as early as 2030, precipitating the risk of extreme drought, wildfires, floods and food shortages for hundreds of millions of people. The authors called for global cooperation in order to lessen the magnitude of rising sea levels and save coral reefs. Their report was a call to action, stating that without major changes on a global order, our planet could deteriorate in a rapid and dangerous way.
Lehigh’s own Dork Sahagian, a professor of earth and environmental sciences, has worked on previous IPCC reports. Sahagian served as a “contributing author” on the Second Assessment Report, a “reviewer” of the Third Assessment Report, and a “contributing author” of the Fourth Assessment Report in 2007. His contribution regarded the rate of sea level rise, a concern for coastal and island populations. “I figured out that by building dams in the 20th century, we impounded water on land at such a rate that we slowed the rate of sea level rise being caused by glacial melting and ocean warming,” Sahagian said. “As such, we were predicting future sea level rise based on observations of 20th century sea level rise that were ‘too slow.’ I predicted in 2000 that we would see an immediate doubling of the rate of sea level rise in the 21st century because we stopped building major dams. This doubling from 1.5-1.7 mm/yr in the 20th century has now happened, and we are already seeing a sea level rise rate of over 3 mm/yr.”
Sahagian outlined three of the most important ways humans can stop the rise in global temperatures. First and foremost, he says, is to stop burning fossil fuels unnecessarily. “We do not need them to generate electricity. We do not need them for surface transportation. We do not need them to heat our homes and buildings. We can use sustainable energy sources for all that,” Sahagian said.
Next, he said, would be to stop cutting down forests, tropical and otherwise. And lastly, humans need to reduce their population - not through war or starvation, but through global family planning efforts. Finally, Sahagian implored the U.S. to join the majority of the world in not seeing climate science as a political matter.
“It seems that climate change and science in general has become a political matter, with people taking ‘sides’.... This mostly pertains to the US, as the rest of the world seems to understand the causes and consequences of climate change and we are lagging behind in sustainable energy,” Sahagian said. “Some Americans still even consider shopping a recreational activity. Until this mindset changes, we have little hope of meeting any sustainability goals.”
Lehigh Sustainability is committed to action and making a difference - on campus and off. Now's the time for everyone to play a role. For more information on how you can help, connect with Lehigh Sustainability here.
Story by Jordan Wolman