Earth’s climate is warming because we burn fossil fuels for electricity, transport, heating, and food production, and this releases greenhouse gases. The polar regions (the Arctic and Antarctic) are warming faster than anywhere else, and ice melting there will affect the whole planet. To stop the melting, we must reduce fossil fuel use. However, some people believe reducing fossil fuel use is too difficult or expensive and suggest developing technologies to control the climate. These ideas are called geoengineering. But geoengineering is risky, expensive, slow to develop, and may not work. It also requires global cooperation and could harm fragile polar ecosystems. The best solution is to cut greenhouse gas emissions. We already have the technology to do so, it is proven to work, and it will benefit everyone, including the polar regions, if we act now. Cutting emissions is the safest and most effective way to protect our planet.

La Jornada: Geoingeniería solar para el lucro y la guerra

Editorial: Sun-dimming risks putting the planet’s thermostat under Donald Trump’s control. Better to adopt the precautionary principle with high-stakes science

With support from Microsoft, Stripe, and Shopify, Running Tide billed itself as on the cutting edge of carbon removal. In the end, it resorted to dumping thousands of tons of wood chips in the sea.

Guest article by  Tamra L Gilbertson, MPH, PhD