by Anne MacLennan
In his new book, A Climate of Truth Mike Berners-Lee (author of There is no Planet B) points out that we are in a polycrisis, faced with interactive crises in climate, biodiversity, pollution, energy, food, disease and population. We’ve known about these issues for decades and had the knowledge to avoid crisis, but obviously not the will. Why? Berners-Lee blames a lack of truth. ‘Deceit in all its forms, is a spanner that we can no longer afford to have in the works of our problem-solving’. He also mentions ‘Our tendency to select the leaders who don’t have the qualities that we need’. A fuller review will come next month, but in the meantime, some reflections on our confused world.
In January, Earth.org listed current environmental problems. They end by suggesting sustainable things to do and have a What can I do? page. Last year’s record temperatures were aggravated by an El Niño natural weather variation. This year should be cooler without it, but in fact looks as though it is going to stay above the 1.5C threshold.
Pollution comes from conventional agriculture to include fertilisers, antibiotics and pesticides, which are becoming evermore widely disseminated in the environment. Fossil fuels contribute to air pollution, and plastics use and abuse is spiralling out of control.
Source: Science Direct. Non-approved pesticides still represent a significant part of environmental cocktails.
As a climate activist and non-Catholic, I read Laudato Si’ in 2015, in which Pope Francis invited all people to ‘dialogue about our common home and the environmental crisis’. It was hard-hitting and passionate. It appeared to make a big impact on religious and non-religious communities around the world. That was the same year that the Paris Agreement undertook to keep global temperature rise well below 2C and try to limit the increase to 1.5C. There was a sense of hope that the changing climate, environmental destruction and the integral injustices were being taken seriously. That was 10 years ago and emissions are still rising, species are going extinct, air, water and soil are more polluted and injustice abounds.
Most ordinary people round the world want their governments to do more about the climate crisis. Scotland was doing well and has made great promises, but seems to have lost the plot a bit recently. At the end of 2020, still affected by Covid, the Scottish Government’s updated climate change plan included stated aims to reduce emissions 75% by 2030 and to reduce car mileage by 20%. Aims dropped in April 2024 and ‘25 respectively. Domestic transport has been the largest source of emissions in Scotland. During lockdown, the air cleared as these emissions reduced, but bounced back in 2021 and eased up further in 2022.
Glasgow airport is desperate to increase flights and the Scottish Government is keen “To help airports and airlines rebuild and grow Scotland’s international air connectivity following COVID-19 to support inbound tourism and sustainable economic growth, whilst reducing the environmental impact of aviation in line with the Scottish Government’s commitment to be a net-zero nation by 2045,” as in their key priorities for aviation (2024). These aims are not compatible in my understanding. ‘Sustainable’ aviation fuel is one misjudged factor. It may reduce CO2 emissions in the air but as Berners-Lee points out there are very high energy or land use demands to create the fuel. Sorry – we just have to fly and drive less.
But all is not lost (yet). Most of the individuals and organisations calling out about the problems are also sharing ways of transitioning to a more sustainable, cleaner, fairer, less conflicted world.