What 2020 Meant for Climate Change and the Environment

• News & Highlights

The first lockdown brought most of the world to a standstill, and many were quick to point out the silver lining: the significant drop in carbon emissions. However, this pollution reduction was short-lived, and past crises indicate that we might be standing at a crossroads when it comes to our climate goals. What has this unprecedented year meant for the efforts to curb climate change and protect the environment?

As most economic activities have slowed down this year, especially in spring, a significant drop in greenhouse gases was expected. After several months of lockdown, severely reduced air traffic and closed construction sites carbon emissions this year have only gone down 5.5% from 2019 (according to the latest data). This not only illustrates how the pandemic’s impact on climate change was overstated, but it paints an entirely new picture of the scale and effort required to shift the needle in terms of carbon emissions. As the pandemic unfolded, climate disruption continued apace. 2020 is on track to be one of the three warmest years on record, completing a streak of six consecutive years each one hotter than the other. The year was also marked by extreme weather events, from the devastating bushfires in Australia, floods in Asia and the USA, to severe droughts in South America, all consequences of the climate change.