Planetary Boundaries: Earth on Red Alert

Climate change is already here: 2024 was a record-breaking year, the first to exceed +1.5°C of warming compared to the pre-industrial period globally. In France, the increase is even higher at +2.2°C—an unusually hot year, but also one marked by little sunshine and exceptionally heavy rainfall. We have seen the impacts on human health (excess mortality), infrastructure damage from storms and floods, declining crop yields and quality, the spread of livestock diseases, increased variability in water resources, and wildfires. Action is needed, and now.

Those who describe environmental policy as “punitive,” or as having been “distorted by climate terrorism,” and who propose a moratorium on wind and solar power—turning away from essential measures to mitigate the effects of climate shocks—are irresponsible. The session will examine possible solutions: how to reduce emissions in order to limit future warming, and how to protect the health of those who work outdoors or live in poorly insulated housing.