The Doom vs. Optimism Debate
Depending on how you look at it, the climate story is one that can inspire genuine optimism or a fair bit of doomerism.
On any given day, there are news stories, academic studies and memes that support two dueling narratives:
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The fatalistic view that global warming is out of control.
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And the more hopeful, technocratic outlook that, while the challenges are real, the solutions are within reach.
This week brought yet another slew of data that provides an opportunity to hold these two seemingly contradictory truths at the same time.
There are elements of truth to both perspectives, of course. It’s a disorienting dynamic that we grapple with as reporters covering climate change. Our work involves reporting on the world as it is. Sometimes that means staring down hard facts about the mess we’ve made, and sometimes that means highlighting the real progress that is underway.
Yes, planet-warming emissions are still on the rise, and the effects of climate change are growing worse. And also, yes, renewable energy is coming online at record rates, and there is a huge global effort to deal with an overheating planet.
On Wednesday, a new report highlighted the stunning, record-breaking gains in wind and solar power around the world. A full 30 percent of global electricity was generated by renewables last year, according to Ember, an energy think tank.
On the very same day, however, the latest figures from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Mauna Loa Observatory revealed record levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This was the largest 12-month increase ever recorded on the so-called Keeling Curve, which has been used to measure the concentration of CO2 since 1958.