How to stop climate change and save the planet.

We hear a lot about changing of climate, but what can we do about it.

First things first, Climate change is a real and most important thing. There's scientific consensus on this issue as well as the fact that humans are contributing to climate change in a significant way. We might all wish it were otherwise, but that's not reality. So what's to be done.

The International Institute for applied Systems Analysis looked into the matter. Scientists found that with some significant effort we could reach zero net Anthropogenic Emissions by 2040.

By emissions they mostly mean Carbon and the way we do it is through two main efforts.

First, we would need to cut way back on fossil fuel use. The Institute studies showed that we need to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels to less than 25 percent of our global energy supply by 2100.

Right now fossil fuels normally account for 95 percent of our energy supply, we've got a long way to go. Alternatives to fossil fuels are tricky, fossil fuels are dense with energy and we've built massive infrastructures that exploit this trait.

We've also designed enormous corporations that are in the business of Harvesting, Refining Transporting or selling fossil fuels. It's big business and it's been around for more than a century.

Renewable sources like Solar power, Hydro power and Wind power can offset our dependence on fossil fuels but they come with their own set of drawbacks.

The report found that from 2013 to 2014, Renewable energy production increased by 2.6 percent. If we were to boost that to 5 percent per year by 2022, net emissions would peak.

We'd still need to create new technologies to remove Carbon from the atmosphere to avoid the global average temperature increase by two and a half degrees Celsius.

Other technologies might help us shed fossil fuels but they're problematic too. Nuclear fission plants are improving with innovative ways to reduce waste.

But many people feel that's not enough to justify their use. If we can find a way to make nuclear fusion power plants sustainable that would go a long way to solving our energy issues while simultaneous sidestepping the problem of generating nuclear waste.

But we're still trying to design a nuclear fusion plant that can consistently produce more energy than it takes to operate it.

Whatever our strategy the report states that we need to reduce our use of fossil fuels dramatically. But that's just part one of the strategy part two has to do with the way we use Land.

The Carbon cycle depends upon carbon sinks which absorb carbon from the atmosphere and store it away. Since Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, this helps reduce the greenhouse effect. 

Carbon sinks include forests it should come as no surprise then that the report strongly recommends we stop deforestation as much as we possibly can.

If we don't step up our game the study reports, then we can expect carbon emissions to increase until the end of the century.

With a global average temperature increase of three and a half degrees Celsius. A satellite image of the earth from 2100 would look very different from ours today with large parts of coastal regions submerged by rising oceans and millions of people displaced as a result.

Climate change is not a joke and limiting it will take a huge amount of willpower and effort.

But those are things we humans have in abundance, we just have to commit to it and not ignore problems because they seem too difficult to solve.

I personally believe that we can make a positive difference. I have a question for you guys

is this: What do you think will be the biggest breakthrough to curtail climate change?

Thanks for reading this article.