Many international policies encourage a switch from fossil fuels to bioenergy based on the premise that its use would not result in carbon accumulation in the atmosphere. Frequently cited bioenergy goals would at least double the present global human use of plant material, the production of...

Human-induced temperature increase is amplified in the Arctic, as well as its effects on the ice cover. With the aid of an Arctic "death spiral”, Prof. Peter Wadhams, oceanographer and glaciologist at Cambridge University, discusses scientific evidence and his personal experience of changes in...

Greenhouse gas removal (GGR) methods such as direct air capture, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage, biochar and enhanced weathering have recently attracted attention as “geoengineering” options to reverse the build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Contrary to this framing,...

Tipping points are zones or thresholds of profound changes in natural or social conditions with very considerable and largely unforecastable consequences. Tipping points may be dangerous for societies and economies, especially if the prevailing governing arrangements are not designed either to...

There is currently a huge gulf between natural scientists’ understanding of climate tipping points and economists’ representations of climate catastrophes in integrated assessment models (IAMs). In particular, there are multiple potential tipping points and they are not all low-probability...

Changes in the Atlantic overturning circulation have a strong influence on European temperatures, North American sea level and other climate phenomena worldwide. A meaningful assessment of associated societal impacts needs to be based on the full range of its possible future evolution. This...

The National Assembly for Wales is engaged in the preparation of a national spatial planning framework to provide a context for sustainable development and environmental quality. This paper reports on research undertaken for the Assembly on the preparation of the spatial planning framework and...