ANNEX: The Climate Web

Scientists started calling attention to the risk that rising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from human activities might disrupt 10,000 years of global climate stability more than 60 years ago. In 1988, climate scientist James Hansen testified to Congress that observable “global warming” had arrived. Today a global commitment exists to keep the increase in average global temperature (AGT) below 2^o Celsius (C) (about 3^o Fahrenheit), and a low-carbon transition is underway.

But even as the low-carbon transition gains steam, the risks of climate disruption are becoming more and more clear. Indeed, climate change seems to be accelerating. With both GHG emissions and global temperature continuing to rise, scientists are asking “how bad will it be, and how soon?” Likely temperature change by 2100 is between 3 and 5^o C, well above the global target. That may still not sound like much, but average global temperature is a tricky metric; 3 to 5^o C would be catastrophic for billions of people and millions of species.

To avoid such an outcome, we need to substantially up our game when it comes to mitigating climate change, and accelerating the low-carbon transition. As Albert Einstein supposedly said (he didn’t actually), “doing the same over and over again while expecting a different result is one definition of insanity.”

Why TheBrain and the Climate Web?

The information that would most help you as an individual, a corporate executive, or a policymaker to advance your climate goals almost certainly exists, but given the sheer magnitude and nature of today’s climate knowledge you’re unlikely to ever come across it. A knowledge management system can greatly increase your odds of getting to your “actionable knowledge(https://app.thebrain.com/brain/2cfec560-6321-4d32-a42f-f04ad33f1092/5ac830e5-5e20-4841-a952-deff8f5fc453).”

That’s why the Climatographers built the Climate Web, based on more than 35,000 hours of curating climate knowledge and resources to help explore hundreds of topics including:

• What are the societal risks associated with a warming world?
• What are the 2nd and 3rd order business risks of a warming world?
• Are we under-estimating the risks posed by climate tipping points and systemic risks?
• What are the barriers to accelerating a low-carbon transition?
• How do the roles of individuals and companies differ in tackling climate change?
• What are the most plausible solutions when it comes to tackling climate change?
• Are business climate risk disclosures likely to mitigate climate change?
• How could Team Urgency be playing much better Climate Chess against Team No-Urgency?

One thing that makes TheBrain software truly unique is its ease of use. You can download the software for FREE and be building your own brains in about 15 minutes. That’s what the Climatographers did almost 20 years ago, long before we started building the Climate Web. We still use TheBrain to keep our home inventory up-to-date, to keep track of all our important personal and professional documents, and much more.

Of course, building a “climate brain” is a lot more challenging than tracking a home inventory. Here’s why:

• Climate change is a “wicked problem,” meaning that the Climate Web’s scope has to be broad enough to encompass hundreds of topics across the science, psychology, politics, and economics of and solutions to climate change.

• As a result the Climate Web contains hundreds of thousands of thoughts (books, reports, videos, websites, images, ideas, etc.) linked in almost a million ways. It is the closest thing to a collective climate intelligence.

• Unlike a home inventory brain, the Climate Web is intended for use by individuals who aren’t familiar with TheBrain software, and needs to be structured accordingly.

That’s why the Climate Web leverages another truly powerful feature of TheBrain, it’s flexibility. The Climate Web allows information to be organized for audiences with very different levels of familiarity with TheBrain, and/or very different topical interests.

To learn more about the Climate Web take advantage of our Climate Web website. You can also jump directly into the Climate Web here. Note that as of 1/13/2024 the Climate Web is “down,” but expect it back up soon!