Achieving climate resolutions via diplomatic discussions

The MIT Media Lab played host to the SimPlanet event this week, where participants gathered to address one of the world's most pressing issues: climate change. The event featured a beta-test of a new interactive energy and climate policy simulation model called En-ROADS, developed jointly by the MIT Sloan Sustainability Initiative and Climate Interactive.

Dr. Sterman, the event's keynote speaker, emphasised that climate change is no longer solely a science, engineering, or economic problem. Instead, it is a social and political issue that necessitates personal and political actions to implement the necessary policies to cut emissions in time.

The En-ROADS simulation used in SimPlanet has been utilised by members of Congress, national representatives at UN climate negotiations, and political and business leaders worldwide. Without any new policies, the expected increase in global temperature by the end of the century, according to En-ROADS, would be approximately 4.1 degrees Celsius.

During the event, students worked in teams representing eight different interest groups: developed and developing nations, environmental activists, and industries that make and use energy. They used the En-ROADS model to explore various policy options and their implications.

One of the most effective drivers of emissions reductions in the En-ROADS simulation was found to be a price on carbon. Conflict emerged among the teams as the interests of some groups were directly contrary to those of others, revealing the complexity of negotiating to find common ground.

Despite these challenges, the teams at the event arrived at a set of policies that held the expected warming to just 1.9 degrees Celsius. While this is a significant improvement, it still falls short of the goal of the Paris Agreement, which commits nations to holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius compared to preindustrial levels, and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The outcome of the event, using En-ROADS, showed that while less global warming would occur, it would still be significant: 3.7 degrees Celsius by 2100, far short of the reduction needed and enough to cause significant harm, including extreme weather, declining crop yield, and sea level rise.

To raise awareness and motivate action, the event also featured a visceral demonstration showing the effects of rising sea levels, including the potential inundation of cities like Miami and Shanghai. Additionally, a human chain was formed by members of the team representing climate activists and indigenous peoples to block access to ice cream servers until members of other teams agreed to implement a price on carbon.

Dr. Sterman's comments suggest that tackling climate change requires not just technological or economic solutions, but also social and political actions. The event was sponsored by MIT's Environmental Solutions Initiative, highlighting the institution's commitment to addressing climate change through collaborative, interdisciplinary efforts.