Outdated economic theories and a poor grasp of worst-case scenarios are behind our failure to curb carbon emissions, says climate policy expert Simon Sharpe – but it isn’t too late to change tack.

IT IS easy to feel anxious about the state of the climate. July was the hottest month on record and hurricanes, floods and wildfires have recently ravaged many countries. Despite this, last week, the UK government delayed its plans for net zero. Rising carbon emissions put the world on course to increase its average temperature by about 2.7°C above preindustrial temperatures by the end of this century – almost double the Paris Agreement’s target of 1.5°C. But we can decarbonise the global economy far quicker, says Simon Sharpe, who has spent a decade working at the forefront of climate change diplomacy.

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