🌍 A Wake-Up Call: CO₂ Levels Just Hit a Record High
In 2024, the planet gave us a clear, unignorable message: atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentrations jumped by 3.5 parts per million (ppm) — the largest single-year increase ever recorded since measurements began in 1957. That pushes the global average to around 424 ppm, a 52% rise over pre-industrial levels.
Donald Trump can try to deny climate change all he likes, but science doesn’t lie. The numbers don’t care about politics. We can see the results with our own eyes: heatwaves, wildfires, shifting seasons, and extreme weather events that ripple across the globe.
🔥 What’s Driving This Unprecedented Jump?
There’s no single villain here, it’s a cocktail of human activity and stressed ecosystems:
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Fossil Fuel Emissions: Despite renewables gaining traction, the world is still burning far too much coal, oil, and gas.
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Intense Wildfires: Fires in places like the Amazon and Africa have released massive amounts of CO₂, creating a feedback loop of heat and dryness.
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Weakened Carbon Sinks: Our forests, soils, and oceans — natural CO₂ sponges — are under pressure from droughts, heatwaves, and deforestation, meaning less CO₂ is being absorbed.
After campaigning for nearly 30 years, I never thought we’d find ourselves here again, with people unwilling to accept climate change, thinking we can just go on as usual with a shrug and a “Drill, Baby, Drill!”
🌡️ Why It Matters
This spike is more than a number — it’s a warning we cannot ignore:
-Accelerated Warming: More CO₂ equals more trapped heat and rising global temperatures.
-Extreme Weather Events: Heatwaves, storms, floods, and droughts are becoming the new normal.
-Ocean Acidification: Increased CO₂ levels are making our oceans more acidic, threatening marine life.
-Ecosystem Stress: Plants, animals, and entire habitats are struggling to cope with rapid changes.
We can’t afford to act like this is someone else’s problem. It’s here, it’s now, and we see the impacts all around us.
🌱 How We Can Make a Difference
Here’s the thing — even though the scale is huge, communities and individuals do have power:
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Lead by Example: Reduce energy use, support renewables, and make low-carbon choices in your daily life.
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Restore Nature: Plant trees, support local conservation projects, and protect natural habitats.
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Speak Up: Make sure our politicians know that climate denial is a non-starter. We vote for leaders who take this seriously.
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Build Community Action: Educate friends, neighbours, and local groups. Collective action is unstoppable.
Ever the optimist, I focus on encouragement. Every small action matters, and when communities come together, we can tip the scales.
🌍 Keep Climate on the Agenda
We must make it clear: ignoring climate change is not an option. It’s not just an environmental issue, it’s social, economic, and moral. We’ve seen the consequences around the world. We know what’s at stake.
And yes, we can make a difference. We can reduce emissions, restore nature, and influence policy, together. But we have to act, and we have to be persistent.
Call to Action: Stay informed, stay engaged, and let’s make sure our voices are heard. Communities matter. Individual action matters. Politicians must know: climate denial is a dead-end, and we will vote for leaders who act. Book your place on our first Carbon Literacy for Communities Course – coming to Chester in January
Because if we don’t, the Earth won’t wait for us to catch up.
