Contents
Foreword ix
Introduction 1
The Four Horsemen of the Cart Apocalypse 2
Change Is Here 4
The Tyranny of Convenience 6
Understanding Carbon Lock-in 10
The Wizard, the Prophet, and the Ostrich 12
Beyond the Polar Bear-Animals on the Edge of Extinction 13
Should You opt In or opt Out? 14
Game Theory 15
A Brave and Startling Truth 16
Climate Change for Rookies 19
What Is Climate Change? 20
The Greenhouse Effect 22
What's All This Talk About Carbon? 23
Weather vs. Climate 23
Invisible Carbon Emissions 24
How Much Is a Metric Ton (Tonne)? 25
Fast Facts and Definitions 26
Climate Change in Front of Your Eyes 28
What Is Net Zero? 30
10 Myths About Climate Change 32
20 Truths About Climate Change 34
The Diffusion of Innovations 35
Climate Change Actions from Large to Small 36
Here's What's True 39
What Is Carbon? 40
Natural Sources of Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere 42
How Much Carbon Are We Talking About? 43
What Is the Carbon Cycle? 44
Balance in the Earth's Carbon Cycle 45
The Exxon Climate Memo from 1982 46
Jean Sen bier’s Carbon Discovery 48
Carbon Dioxide on Earth over Time 49
Temperature Change on Earth 50
CO2 Equivalents 51
The Relationship Between Population Growth and Emissions 52
The History of Systematic Measurement of CO2 54
What Is an Ecosystem? 55
Planetary Boundaries: Limits of the Natural World 56
Understanding the Greenhouse Effect 57
Why Are the Greenhouse Emissions Numbers So Confusing? 58
Our Choices Can Have a Lethal Impact 60
Carbon Feedback Cycles 61
What Do I Get for 1kg CO2? 62
CO2 Emissions by Country 64
Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions by Sector 66
Where Does All the Carbon Go? 70
Energy Production and Carbon 72
The Energy Cost of Plug Loads 73
Construction's Carbon Debt 74
Agriculture and Meat Production's Role in Climate Change 76
Urban Heat Islands 77
The Plastic Lifecycle 78
The True Cost of Plastic 79
The Dust Bowl: Lessons Learned for Farmers Everywhere 80
Carbon Inequality, Climate Change, and Class 81
Paving the Planet 82
CO2 Emissions from Global Shipping 83
The Domino Effect in Action: Urea 84
Effects of Carbon-Based Cooking Fuel 85
Short-Lived Climate Pollutants 86
Smoke Signals: A Global Warning from Australia 87
Computing and Carbon 88
Recycling Paper 89
The Climate Cost of Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers 90
Heating the Outdoors with Patio Heaters 91
Scenarios 93
The Five Scenarios Outlined by the IPCC 94
Understanding the Five Scenarios 96
10-, 50-, 100-, and 1,000-Year Climate Events 100
Shifts in the Atlantic Ocean's Currents 102
Who Suffers Most? 104
Ocean Acidity 105
Impacts 107
Threats to Coastal Communities 108
Population Growth 109
Human Migration Away from Inhospitable Land 110
The Impact of Climate Change on Indigenous Peoples 111
Race, Fairness, and Climate 112
Displaced Human Communities 113
2020 Covid Lockdown and Climate 114
Food Production and Availability 116
Agricultural Pests and Diseases 118
Food Insecurity 119
Land and Soil Degradation 119
Soil Loss 120
Reductions in Major Crop Yields 121
Food Price Spikes 122
The Economics of Rising Temperatures 123
Effects of CO2 on Crop Nutrition 124
Flooding 124
Contaminated Water and Debris from Flooding 125
Water Stress 126
Dust Storms 128
Hot Droughts 129
Desertification 130
Loss of Wetlands and Marshes 131
Extreme Precipitation 132
Wildfires 133
What is Biodiversity? 134
Biodiversity Loss and Climate Change 135
Impact on Forests 136
Ground-Level Ozone 137
Increased Ozone Inhibits Photosynthesis 137
Impact to Peatlands 138
Carbon and the Oceans 139
Bleaching and Loss of Coral Reefs 140
Shoreline Erosion 141
The Impact of Thawing Permafrost 142
The Shrinking of Glaciers 143
Snowfall and Melting Arctic Ice 144
Marine Heat Waves 144
Hurricanes, Typhoons, and Cyclones 145
Energy Production and Negative Health Impacts 146
Human Health Impact: An Overview 146
Heat and Health 147
Long-Term Wildfire Impacts: Effects of Smoke 148
Food and Waterborne Diarrheal Disease 149
The Impact of Global Tourism 150
The Costs of Sea Level Rise 150
Impact of Carbon Exports & Imports 152
Impact of Commercial Space Travel 153
Eco-Anxiety 154
Solutions 157
The Drawdown Rankings 158
Greenwashing & Recycling Theatre 160
Bioplastics 162
Fast Fashion and Carbon 162
A Carbon Dividend and Fee 163
Mass Transit 164
The Rise of E-Bikes 166
Electric Vehicles 167
How Roundabouts Help Lower Emissions 168
Energy-Efficient Cars 169
The Changing Cost of Power 170
Energy Payback for Renewables 171
Wind Energy 172
Solar Energy 174
How Much Land Would It Take to Power the US Through Solar? 176
Advances in Solar Power 178
Hydroelectric Power 180
Generating Energy from Ocean Tides 182
Nuclear Energy by Fission 184
Nuclear Energy by Fusion 186
Geothermal Energy 188
Hydrogen for Energy Storage 190
Energy from Biomass and Trash 191
Carbon-Neutral Fuels: Ammonia 192
Carbon-Neutral Fuels: Hydrogen 194
Job Transition from Fossil Fuels 196
The Challenges of Critical Mineral Needs for Clean Energy 198
Surprising Facts About Meat 200
Food Loss and Waste 201
Using Agriculture as a Carbon Sink 202
Developing Plant-Based Alternatives 203
Drip Irrigation 204
Does Farm Size Matter? 205
Chocolate and Climate 206
About Milk and Its Alternatives 207
Edible Insects 208
Backyard Regeneration 210
Composting 212
Forests Support Food Security 213
Carbon Labeling 214
Footprints and Labels 216
Green Steel 217
Low-Carbon Concrete 218
Reducing Embodied Carbon in Building Materials 219
Building Materials That Sequester Carbon 220
Zero-Emission Homes 222
Cross-Laminated Timber 223
Wool & Hemp: Allies in Construction 224
Green Building Certifications 225
What Is Carbon Offsetting? 226
Direct Air Capture 228
Storing Carbon Naturally 229
Replenishing Forests 230
The Limits of Reforestation 231
Blue Carbon 232
Using Soil to Store Carbon 234
Restoring Soil Health 234
Geoengineering 236
Geoengineering with Sulfur Dioxide 237
Whose Job Is It? 239
Glasgow Breakthrough Agenda 240
What is the UNFCCC / Kyoto I Paris Agreement? 240
Indigenous Youth Represent Their Culture to Demand Action 242
What Are Cities Doing? (The C:40) 244
Schools and Solar Power 245
The State of Climate Change Litigation 246
The Positive Impact of SustaimJ?ility on Investor Returns 248
Youth-Led Climate Litigation 249
Share of Global GHG Emissions Covered by Carbon Pricing
Systems 250
Role of Finance 251
ESG Reporting Frameworks 252
Global Companies Committing to Science-Based Net-Zero Targets 253
Where You Bank Makes a Difference 254
The 20 Largest Fossil Fuel Producers 256
10 Publishers Promoting Climate Change Denial Content Online 257
Oil Subsidies 258
Cloud Seeding 258
Wealth and Greenhouse Gases 259
Individual Carbon Footprint and Collective Action 260
Talking About Climate Change 261
Saint Kateri Habitats 262
Top Donors in Climate Philanthropy 2020-2021 263
Leading the Way 265
30 Leading Climate Scientists 266
Countries Leading Climate Change Action 268
African Reforestation Initiative 269
Leaders Championing Climate Policy 270
Global Climate Youth Activists 274
NGOs Working to Address Climate Change Around the World 276
Leaders of Civics Programs Addressing Environmental Issues 280
Top Global Universities for Studying the Environment, Ecology, and Climate 281
Influential Artists and Climate 282
Principles for Responsible Investing 286
A Corporate Race for Sustainability 288
Ranking the Greenest Companies : 291
Resources 293
The Educators Guide 294
Read, Watch, Listen, Act 295
Getting Started with Climate Action 303
Glossary 313
Acknowledgments 317
Contributors 318
Index 321
It is Not Too Late 330
Things to Do Today 331
What you will find at
www.thecarbonalmanac.org 335