Moving beyond coal
There is a global push to transition beyond coal and assure the economic future of coal communities. But as the climate worsens and coal declines, it is time to get serious.
Link here to key analysis and information.
Climate urgency & insecurity
As the world passes 1ºC of global heating and 416 ppm of atmospheric CO2, the carbon budget to remain below 1.5ºC is rapidly disappearing. Yet with vast and unprecedented fires, accelerated polar melting, and ever more violent weather, it is clear that dangerous global heating is already underway.
From East Africa to Bangladesh, Australia, California and the Caribbean, communities are suffering.
The human costs of coal
Along with other fossil fuels, the burning of coal in power stations and homes contributes to enormous global mortality and illness around the world - greater than war and conflict. This burden falls mostly on the developing world, and on regions close to coal mines and power plants.
Coal includes numerous heavy metals and toxic elements, and causes cancer and heart and black lung disease. Mining destroys precious landscapes, sensitive ecosystems, and indigenous and rural communities.
Just transitions
Coal mining and power employ over 7 million people worldwide, and entire regions depend on it for a living. Their futures matter as coal declines economically, and climate action accelerates the transition.
Climate activists are calling for a just transition out of coal, and researchers, trade unions, governments and civil society are pooling knowledge about how to build sustainable new industries and futures.
