URGENT G20 AND COP26 PRIORITIES FOR A HEALTHY CLIMATE July 2 6 , 2021 Dear World Leader: We are an international network of scientists, engineers, physicists, biologists, and public policy experts active in the climate change arena. We are calling upon you for leadership at G20 in Rome and COP 26 in Glasgow to accelerate the global response to the planetary climate crisis and prevent catastrophic temperature increases. Modeling and policies have to date lagged behind the increasing pace and impacts of the climate crisis. In reality, the world is already experiencing dangerous climate change: ● Global warming is devastating coral reefs and rainforests, intensifying forest fires, increasing extreme weather, raising sea levels, spreading deserts, and decreasing crop yields. ● Crucial regions of the cryosphere are melting, including glaciers, sea ice, and permafrost. 1 Although rapidly achieving net zero emissions is critical, reducing greenhouse gas emissions alone will not avert the climate security emergency confronting us. 2 Even if most countries greatly increase their commitments and breakthroughs expedite the transition to emission - free technologies, the 2°C target will still be overshot due to systemic inertia from legacy greenhouse gases, warm ing oceans, and the decades required to replace existing infrastructure. The total cumulative CO 2 emissions released to date are consistent with the worst - case IPCC scenario. 3 All CMIP modeling suggests that the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C will be reached around 2030 or 2035. Rising temperatures are likely to have imminent catastrophic impacts, including: ● Warming above 1.5°C will make much of the tropics unlivable. ● Rising global temperatures are accelerating the melt of the Greenland Ice Sheet (which would raise sea levels by seven meters). ● 20% to 30% of the world’s land surface will become significantly drier and less productive with less than a 2°C rise. Climate change ma y also trigger uncontrollable runaway feedback loops and tipping points in all major Earth systems. In the absence of successful countermeasures, the first climate tipping point, complete melting of summer Arctic Sea ice, could begin within this decade. Th e resulting darker “Blue Ocean” will increasingly absorb heat and accelerate global warming. Reflective sea ice is an anchor of the climate system; its loss will increase the risk of crossing other catastrophic climate tipping points, including the release of vast quantities of methane from melting permafrost and warming seas. 4 5 In view of the high probability that current climate targets and efforts will not be able to safely stabilize the climate, we ask you to raise the urgent need for broadening the scope of international cooperation on climate action at the highest levels of G20 and COP26 deliberations. Priority must be given to establishing a multi - disciplinary, inclusive process for rapidly researching and deploying a suite of actionable measures to prevent dangerous global heating and regenerate a healthy c limate. 6 1 Wadhams., 2017, A Farewell to Ice: A Report from the Arctic. Oxford Univ. Press. 2 Planetary Restoration Action Group, 2021. 3 Taylor and Vink, 2021, Given that the Paris Agreement is unlikely to prevent dangerous climate overshoot an alternative risk management strategy is urgently needed. 4 Lenton et al, 2019, Climate tipping points — too risky to bet against. 5 Zaelke and Bledsoe, (2019), Our Future Depends on the Arctic. 6 Baiman, Arctic Sea - Ice Triage, Carbon Cycle Restoration, and a Renewable Energy and Materials Economy. Page | 2 Researchers around the globe are developing a wide range of technological, nature - based, and non - technological approaches for climate cooling and regeneration. 7 Because this challenge is unprecedented in magnitude, urgency, complexity, and risk, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommend examining all possible response options. Most scenarios assume the large - scale use of carbon dioxi de (CO 2 ) removal measures (CDR). However, research must address the concern that emissions reduction and CDR measures, while essential, would act too slowly to prevent dangerous overshoot. 8 While there are legitimate concerns about the risks associated w ith climate interventions, now is not the time to take any option off the table. Climate change is a risk management problem. It requires a comparative assessment of the likely risks and costs of acting or not acting to prevent undesirable impacts. While i t would not be safe to deploy untested technologies, the consequences could be catastrophic if interventions were not made in time to stop runaway climate change. 9 All approaches should be evaluated for effectiveness, feasibility, equity, safety, timefram e, and the long - term potential for unintended consequences. 10 11 12 13 14 15 G20 and COP26 should support open scientific research and immediately commission analysis of the research, development, and funding needed to implement safe measures at scale. The process would culminate in an agreement for international governance and cooperation to deploy safe and effective planetary cooling measures in an unprecedented global effort to regenerate a healthy climate. A realistic plan will need to fully pursue th ree approaches: (1) rapidly reduce GHG emissions; (2) deploy large - scale CDR to draw down atmospheric carbon; and (3) implement methods t o keep temperatures from exceeding safe limits, including protecting and regenerating polar and Himalayan ice, until CO 2 e concentration has been reduced to a level that stabilizes the climate. The overarching goal of international climate action must be to prevent catastrophic or irreversible damage to critical natural and human systems and to return the Earth System to a n enduring healthy state – a state that can recreate a safe, sustainable, biodiverse, and productive climate. This is the legacy we owe our children, our grandchildren, current and future generations, and all life on our planet. We are counting on you to champion this cause. We would be most pleased to confer with you, your colleagues, and your staff. Please do not hesitate to contact [ insert your name] at [ insert your email ] with any questions, comments, or requests for further i nformation. Sincerely yours, 33 signatories from around the world as follows, ( Organization affiliations provided for the purpose of identification only. ) 7 National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Reflecting Sunlight: Recommendations for Solar Geoengineering Research and Research Governance. 8 Hansen et al, 2016, Ice melt, sea level rise and superstorms: evidence from paleoclimate data, climate modeling, and modern observations that 2◦C global warming could be dangerous. 9 Planetary Restoration Action Group, 2021, Humanity’s Urgent Moral Imperative: Returning the Planet to a Proven Safe State. 10 Burd et al, 2016, Towards a transformative understanding of the biology of the ocean’s biological pump: Priorities for future research. 11 Field and Strawa, (2021), Restoring Arctic Ice: A New Way to Stabilize the Climate. 12 Field et al., (2018), Increasing Arctic Sea Ice Albedo Using Localized Reversible Geoengineering. 13 Mulabagal et al, 2021, Biochar from Biomass: A Strategy for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration, Soil Amendment, Power Generation, CO 2 Utilization, and Removal of Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in the Environment. 14 Seddon, 2020, Understanding the value and limits of nature - based solutions to climate change and other global challenges. 15 Steinbach, 2021, Source appo rtionment of methane escaping the subsea permafrost system in the outer Eurasian Arctic Shelf. Page | 3 Australia: John Macdonald, Marine Permaculturist The Climate Foundation Graeme Taylor, PhD BEST Futures Robert Tulip, MA Director, Iron Salt Aerosol Australia Pty Ltd Sue Vink, PhD, Principal Research Fellow The University of Queensland ( researchgate.net/profile/Sue - Vink/4 ) F rance: Renaud de Richter, PhD Independent Researcher on removal of N2O, CH4, Halocarbons, University of Montpellier, France Germany: Franz D. Oeste, Dipl. - Ing., Chemical Engineer Methane Dissipation Processes India: Soumitra Das, PhD, President, Healthy Climate Initiative Mr. Bhaskar V. Mallimadugula Director, Kadambari Consultants Pvt Ltd ( linkedin.com/in/bhaskarmv/ ) Switzerland: Oswald Petersen Atmospheric Methane Removal AG United Kingdom: Clive Elsworth BSc, Scientific Consultant, Restore Our Climate, Methane Action, Co - Founder, Citizens Climate Lobby UK Mark Hi bbert, CivEng, Technical Director LiveEco CIC Andrew Meacham, CEng FIMechE Fellow, Institution of Mechanical Engineers Freeman, Worshipful Company of Engineers John Nissen, MA, Founder and Chair, Arctic Methane Emergency Group (AMEG), Planetary Restoration Action Group (PRAG) Stephen Salter Emeritus Professor of Engineering Design School of Engineering , Edinburgh Peter Wadhams, ScD, Prof. Emeritus Dept of Applied Maths and Theoretical Physics Cambridge Uni versity United States: Andrew Cameron Bailey, CEO and Founder Sacred Earth Enterprises Ron Baiman PhD, Associate Professor of Economics Benedictine University, Founder and leader, Chicago Political Economy Group Wil Burns, PhD, Co - Director Institute for Carbon Removal Law & Policy American University & Visiting Professor Environmental Policy & Culture Program Northwestern University Peter Eisenberger , PhD, Co - Founder and Managing Director, Global Thermostat Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Columbia University Leslie Field, PhD, Lecturer, Stanford University Founder and CTO. Arctic Ice Project ( linkedin.com/in/lesliefield ) Gene R. H. Fry, PhD (ret.) Northeast Utilities and Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities ( linkedi n.com/in/gene - fry - a80a377 ) Doug Grandt, BS, Industrial Engineering, CalEPA−Air Resources Board (retired) Healthy Climate Alliance Wilson Hago, PhD, Founder and CEO Hago Energetics, Inc. Brian von Herzen, Ph D Executive Director, Climate Foundation Evan Hughes, PhD, Physics Consultant on Biomass Energy & Geothermal Energy Nadia Soraya Kock, Director The Elk Coast Institute Michael C. MacCracken, PhD Chief Scientist, Climate Change Programs Climate Institute Aria McKenna, Founder, Global Cooling Productions www.globalcoolingproductions.com Joep Meijer, Founder, The Right Environment, http://www.therightenvironment.net/ Suzanne Reed, MFS, Founder The Collaboration Connection Herb Simmens, MPAUP Author, ‘A Climate Vocabulary of the Future’ Founder, Planetphilia ( herbsimmens.com ) Barbara Sneath, PhD Biology Deputy Director, MEER:ReflEction Ye Tao, PhD, Rowland Fellow Experimental Physics and Material Science Rowland Institute at Harvard Page | 4 References (alphabetical by author) 16 (6) Baiman, Ron. 2021. Arctic Sea - Ice Triage, Carbon Cycle Restoration, and a Renewable Energy and Materials Economy Forthcoming in the Review of Radical Political Economics 53(3), May 30 preprint accessed at: https://www.cpegonline.org/post/arctic - sea - ice - traige - carbon - cycle - restoration - and - a - renewable - energy - and - materials - economy (10) Burd, A.B., A. Buchan, M. Church, M. Landry, A. McDonnell, U. Passow, D. Steinberg, H. Benway. 2016. Towards a transformative understanding of the biology of the ocean’s biological pump: Priorities for future research . National Science Foundation Biology of the Biological Pump Workshop, February 19 – 20 version, accessed at: https://www.us - ocb.org/wp - content/uploads/sites/43/2017/01/BioPump - Final.pdf (11) Field and Strawa, (2021), Restoring Arctic Ice: A New Wya to Stabilize the Climate , Arctic Circle Journal (12) Field et al., (2018), Increasing Arctic Sea Ice Albedo Using Localized Reversible Geoengineering , AGU (8) Hansen, James, Makiko Sato, Paul Hearty, Reto Ruedy, Maxwell Kelley, Valerie Masson - Delmotte, Gary Russell, George Tselioudis, Junji Cao, Eric Rignot, Isabella Velicogna, Blair Tormey, Baile y Donovan, Evgeniya Kandiano, Karina von Schuckmann, Pushker Kharecha, Allegra N. Legrande, Michael Bauer,and Kwok - Wai Lo. 2016. Ice melt, sea level rise and superstorms: evidence from paleoclimate data, climate modeling, and modern observations that 2◦C g lobal warming could be dangerous. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 16, 3761 – 3812. Accessed at: www.atmos - chem - phys.net/16/3761/2016/doi:10.5194/acp - 16 - 3761 - 2016 (4) Lenton, Timothy M., Johan Rockström, Owen Gaffney, Stefan Rahmstorf, Katherine Richardson, Will Steffen and Hans Joachim Schellnhuber. 2020. Climate tipping points — too risky to bet against. Nature 575. April 7 version, accessed at: https://media.nature.com/original/magazine - assets/d4 1586 - 019 - 03595 - 0/d41586 - 019 - 03595 - 0.pdf (13) Mulabagal, Vanisree, David A. Baah, Nosa O. Egiebor, Baharak Sajjadi, Wei - Yin Chen, Roger L. Viticoski, Joel S. Hayworth. 2021. Biochar from Biomass: A Strategy for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration, Soil Amendment, Power Generation, CO 2 Utilization, and Removal of Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in the Environment . SpringerLink Living Reference. March 13 version accessed at: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978 - 1 - 4614 - 6431 - 0_80 - 2 (7) National Academies of Science, Engineering,and Medicine. 2021. Reflecting Sunlight: Recommendations for Solar Geoengineering Research and Research Governance. Accessed at: https://www.nap.edu/catalog/25762/reflecting - sunlight - recommendations - for - solar - geoengineering - research - and - research - governance (2 , 9) Planetary Restoration Action Group. 2021. Humanity’s Urgent Moral Imperative: Returning the Planet to a Proven Safe State . Pre - publication version available at: https://30e28210 - 43ef - 4e0b - 81c7 - b722210fbad6.usrfiles.com/ugd/30e282_d1a470482ee94921a349b4ea6e23f7e5.pdf . Figure: https://30e28210 - 43ef - 4e0b - 81c7 - b722210fbad6.usrfiles.com/ugd/30e282_16bff539c740432cbaeb2c7903285528.pdf . Figure Explanation: https://30e28210 - 43ef - 4e0b - 81c7 - b722210fbad6.usrfiles.com/ugd/30e282_8614e23176904c08a83b3a09c788b1bc.pdf (14) Seddon N, Chausson A, Berry P, Girardin CA J, Smith A, Turner B. 2020, Understanding the value and limits of nature - based solutions to climate change and other global challenges Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 375: 20190120: http://dx.doi.org/10.1 098/rstb.2019.0120 (15) Steinbach, Julia, Henry Holmstrand, Kseniia Shcherbakova, Denis Kosmach, Volker Brüchert, Natalia Shakhova, Anatoly Salyuk, Célia J. Sapart, Denis Chernykh, Riko Noormets, Igor Semiletov, and Örjan Gustafsson. 2021. Source apportionment of methane escaping the subsea permafrost system in the outer Eurasian Arctic Shelf. PNAS . March 9, 2021, 118 (10) e2019672118: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2019672118 (3) Taylor, Graeme and Vink, Sue. 2021. Given that the Paris Agreement is unlikely to prevent dangerous climate overshoot, an alternative risk management strategy is urgently needed. This research paper pre - print. April 30 version accessed at: https://eartharxiv.org/repository/vie w/1908/ 16 These references reflect the personal views of their authors and not necessarily those of the signatories to this letter.