Global warming, driven by fossil fuel consumption, has picked up speed and now threatens to push several critical planetary systems past the point of no return. Johan Rockström, who directs the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, delivered that warning Tuesday at the Reuters Sustainability Europe conference in London.
Rockström pointed to coral reefs and the Amazon rainforest as ecosystems already nearing irreversible damage. He also flagged sections of the Atlantic Ocean circulation network, including the current that carries warm Caribbean water toward Western Europe and moderates its climate, as dangerously close to collapse.
The timing matters. The United Nations COP31 climate summit opens November 9, and Rockström cited the latest scientific assessments showing the planet will likely blow past a 1.5 degree Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) average surface temperature increase within just a few years. That breach would supercharge both the frequency and severity of extreme weather.
Meanwhile, Rockström urged corporations to stop treating climate and nature as separate concerns. Instead, he argued, businesses should fold both into one strategic framework. Beyond cutting carbon emissions, companies ought to direct capital toward protecting biodiversity and freshwater reserves, which underpin long-term operational resilience.
He reserved sharp criticism for ongoing lobbying against combustion engine phaseout rules. Rockström called those efforts “incredibly disturbing,” noting that subsidies for petrol and diesel continue to suppress consumer appetite for electric vehicles.
As a result, the window for coordinated action keeps narrowing. The next major test arrives when negotiators gather for COP31, where the gap between scientific urgency and political will faces renewed scrutiny.
