Climate change

Climate change is one of the most studied subjects in the world. We know the cause of it, the effects, and we know how to stop it. But can we?

What is climate change?

Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide are heating the planet. They work like a blanket, trapping heat in. There are more greenhouse gases in the air now than the last 2 million years. We know humans are responsible because chemistry shows the extra carbon dioxide comes from burning fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas).

Tipping point

Scientists thought that even if humans stopped warming the planet, it would continue to heat up for years to come. Modern climate models disagree. They show that temperatures level out in about 10 years.

But not everything stops. Ice sheets melt slowly and sea levels will continue to rise for hundreds of years to come. Experts think around one metre is already unavoidable.

The hardest part is stopping. In 2025, the world released 38.1 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels, the highest figure ever recorded. The past 11 years have been the hottest ever measured. At home, this summer broke records. The UK had five heatwaves, record droughts, and some of its hottest ever days.

Channel 4 News meteorologist (someone who studies the weather) Liam Dutton has seen the UK’s all-time temperature record broken three times since he started the job. He’s also seen more positive change too. “The switch to renewable energy sources has already made them much cheaper than they were a few years ago,” he told Science+Nature.

Climate solutions

For the first time, renewable energy is producing more electricity than coal.

To stop the climate from changing, we need to reach “net zero”. We need to stop adding greenhouse gases to the air faster than we can take them out. It will require a lot of cooperation from a lot of people, countries, and governments.

“Almost all the solutions that we need to mitigate this are already here,” author Cindy Forde told Science+Nature. “The main barrier is political and social.”

Hole in the sky

40 years ago, scientists found a hole in the atmosphere. Ozone is a gas that blocks ultraviolet rays. The hole was being made by chlorofluorocarbons, also called CFCs. They’re chemicals that were used in everything from fridges to deodorant cans.

Countries signed an agreement in 1987 to stop using them and it worked. CFCs and other chemicals that eat the ozone layer have fallen and the hole is repairing itself. Scientists don’t expect the hole to be fully healed for another 30 years but when we all share a goal, we can make big change happen.

It’s possible

In November, politicians meet in Türkiye for COP31. It’s a conference where world leaders try to agree on the best ways to tackle climate change. 2026 is its 31st year. Good ideas can come from meetings like this but some people are frustrated, saying the change doesn’t happen fast enough.

You don’t need permission to start. Amy and Ella Meek launched Kids Against Plastic at just 12 and 10 years old. At 11, Bella Lack started campaigning against palm oil. And at 15, Greta Thunberg gained global headlines by going on school strike and inspiring millions of other people to do the same.

The science is solved. We can stop climate change. The real mystery is whether billions of people all over the world will be able to work together and do it in time.

What works?

In 2017, two researchers tried to find out how much energy recycling and turning off lights actually saves. 72% of greenhouse gas emissions are related to things that households buy and use. Small actions on their own don’t change much but when all combined they can have big consequences.

The researchers said that the amount of energy saved wasn’t enough and that as well as changing our own habits, trying to change other people’s minds would make the most difference. What will you do to change the world?

Also

Weather is what happens today. Climate is over decades.

There are 429.12 parts per million of CO2 in the atmosphere today.

COP stands for Conference of the Parties.

First published in The Week Junior Science+Nature, issue 107, December 2026.