To reverse climate change, we must close off all gaps through mitigation and adaptation measures.

Mitigation actions include using new technologies and renewable energies, upgrading older equipment more efficiently, changing consumer behavior and protecting natural areas that act as carbon sinks like forests, wetlands and grasslands.

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions

One of the primary strategies for combatting climate change is reducing greenhouse gas emissions through adopting renewable energy sources, improving factory and home efficiency and increasing carbon storage via forest growth. We must also promote drought-tolerant crops.

Reducing emissions from industry, which contribute 13.6 gigatonnes annually to climate change, can be accomplished through electrifying production processes and developing innovative technology in high emission sectors like steel, cement and aluminium production, decarbonising oil and gas fields as well as methane abatement and carbon management techniques.

Reducing short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) is one of the quickest, cost-effective, and easiest ways to combat global warming, and could provide major health co-benefits as well as contributing to meeting many sustainable development goals. Delaying action on this front will have detrimental and even irreversible repercussions for air quality, food security, water supply and ecosystem health as well as increasing risks for dangerous feedback loops in climate systems.

Adapting to Changes

At its core, mitigation means stopping greenhouse gases from building up in the atmosphere; but once we’ve already created a warmer planet and set in motion some long-term changes (like sea level rise), adaptation must occur as quickly as possible. This might involve engineering solutions like improved storm drain systems for flood prone areas or cooling technologies in buildings as well as behavioral adjustments like driving less or eating differently.

Climate change mitigation strategies must be tailored specifically for each region, and should follow sustainable design principles such as carbon-conscious materials, regenerative buildings, compact communities and integrated landscapes. They should also take into account issues of environmental justice and equitable development as many climate change harms have an disproportionate effect on underserved communities. Adaptation also requires taking an extended view – three year plans often miss noticing many of its consequences – while an adaptive management approach could prove useful where actions taken initially are treated as small scale experiments before being adjusted accordingly.

Investing in Clean Technology

Investment in clean technology has the power to create jobs and spur economic development. Furthermore, investing in such technologies reduces climate-change-related risks and costs for businesses – including liability issues as well as the costs associated with relocating facilities in case of disasters such as floods or wildfires.

Clean tech companies specialize in replacing carbon-intensive production processes with eco-friendly technologies that reduce emissions, waste, and costs. Examples include water desalination, 3D printed and modular housing, vertical farming, improved insulation/cooling systems, pollution control measures, pollution recovery from soil contaminated by contamination.

Investors play an essential role in helping achieve climate change mitigation targets. Investment in climate-friendly technologies should take place alongside adaptation investments; adaptation investments include measures that help individuals deal with the negative effects of climate change such as flood risk management, alternative crop varieties and land use practices, water conservation measures and sustainable forest management, early warning systems and livelihood diversification (IPCC 2014a). Finally, climate mitigation encompasses sectoral and cross-sector actions which reduce or offset greenhouse gas emissions (GHG emissions).

Local Governments

Municipalities play an essential role in climate change mitigation by encouraging energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions through zoning, bylaws and other tools. Furthermore, municipalities can support renewable energy development by offering support services like planning and permitting.

Customers can also help reduce their own carbon footprint by going carbon neutral in corporate operations, reporting carbon neutrality and purchasing carbon offsets, in addition to participating in third-party verified reduction projects and greening initiatives.

Elliott Cappell believes that municipalities require greater access to training in order to effectively implement climate action measures they have undertaken. Jennifer Winter notes that although local governments can implement property-assessed clean energy programs and other climate actions themselves, such as Vancouver’s expansion of transit which required a costly plebiscite that could only have passed with provincial assistance, this tools helps cities raise money for projects while providing transparency – such as Vancouver’s.