The reality of global warming and the dire consequences that seem certain to arise if we continue to pollute the environment, demand an urgent response.  But what can be done to avert disaster?  The Stern Review on Climate Change clearly identifies the need for immediate action both to mitigate the impact of our carbon based economies and to adapt to the now unavoidable consequences.

Mitigation

 The Stern Review employs the term mitigation to describe a whole raft of strategies aimed at making the transition from a fossil fuel economy to a low carbon future.  These strategies, which are designed to apply breaks to our runaway carbon emissions,  inevitably present enormous challenges to industrialised economies dependant on the most polluting technologies.  Stern recommends that emissions reduction be based on three essential elements – carbon pricing, technology and the removal of barriers to changing behaviour.

 Carbon pricing is based on the principal that the polluter should be responsible for the economic and social impact of their actions.  By imposing a carbon tax and/or an emissions trading scheme on the most heavily polluting industries, the aim is to make traditional carbon intensive energy sources less economic and to encourage companies to pursue low carbon alternatives.  The EU Emissions Trading Scheme established in 2005 was the world's first international trading system for CO² emissions. It allows 11,500 of Europe's most heavily polluting industrial facilities to buy or sell emission allowances with each other.  This not only assists heavy polluters in meeting their obligations under the Kyoto Protocol but also gives them a real economic incentive to clean up their acts.

 Alongside creating a clear economic relationship between releasing greenhouse gases and the cost to the environment, mitigation also requires the funding and active pursuit of new low carbon technologies.  These technologies, which include wind, wave and solar power, are in their infancy and will require substantial investment to bring them to the point where they can offer economically viable alternative energy supplies.  Other as yet undiscovered  energy sources will also require investment in research and development if we are to free ourselves from carbon dependency.

 The third aspect of effective mitigation is to foster cultural change in society.  To encourage individuals, through legislation, education and other incentives, to adapt their behaviour to reduce their carbon footprint.  This will involve reducing taxation on green industries, teaching about climate change in schools and encouraging consumers to make informed decisions about the products they buy and how much energy they consume.  Grass roots empowerment lies at the heart of a necessary and fundamental shift in social attitudes, from the expectation of unrestrained growth to one of more balanced sustainability.