The United Nations (UN) declared on September 2, 2026 that the planet had failed to meet the goal of restricting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The assessment, considered sober, establishes a new objective for climate actions, directing the world towards a future with many uncertainties.
Ten years ago, most nations participating in the Paris Agreement had committed to limiting global temperature rise to “well below” two degrees Celsius, with a larger ambition of reaching 1.5 degrees Celsius, the equivalent of 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit.
However, the 141-page report released by the UN on September 2, 2026 warned that humanity will certainly exceed this limit. The recommendation now is to focus on strategies to contain “excess” warming and, over time, seek to reduce temperatures on a global scale.
Despite significant progress in wind and solar energy sources, several countries have continued with the combustion of oil, gas and coal. This practice released carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, a gas that traps solar heat and boosted the planet’s average temperatures by approximately 1.4 degrees Celsius. The adverse effects of global warming are already evident in all regions, manifesting themselves in more intense heat waves, prolonged dry periods, floods, forest fires and other threats to life on Earth.
The proposal contained in the UN study proves to be an immense challenge, requiring the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in gigantic volumes. To achieve this goal, it would be necessary to cover large areas of land with reforestation or employ advanced carbon capture technologies that, to date, have not demonstrated effectiveness on a large scale.
Given this scenario, the planet’s warming is expected to continue in the short term, without a return to current temperatures for decades, and possibly centuries. Furthermore, certain transformations, such as the melting of glaciers and the rise of the oceans, are considered irreversible, marking a point of no return for the environment.
