Terms to understand to have an understanding of climate change

(This article was published by The Climate Reality Project in late October this year, but is still entirely relevant today)

W

e’re at a historic moment with the UNFCCC COP 21, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 21st Conference of the Parties, in Paris set to begin next month.

With world leaders from 195 countries negotiating to reach a global agreement to reduce carbon emissions, expansive news and media coverage is guaranteed. What’s also guaranteed in this coverage is a host of scientific jargon and acronyms that can be overwhelming to follow, let alone understand.

So this week we’re breaking down climate science to its most basic key terms and phrases to help you better grasp what’s going on in the world with climate change, both at the UN climate talks and beyond.

We’ve got a lot of ground to cover, so let’s jump right in. Below is our list of the top terms you need to know to understand the basic science and political sphere of climate change.

Read The Climate Reality Project story - “Key terms you need to know to understand climate change.”