When you think about climate change - do these following questions pop up in your mind? [Text]

When you think about climate change do these following questions pop, up in your mind?

What is contributing to climate change?  What is contributing more to climate change is it Economic growth or population growth? Can we stop climate change? Should we adapt to climate change? What is mitigation? Who should act - the industrialised nations, the emerging economies or every one? How can we finance it? How can we streamline the international cooperation to overcome the challenges of climate change? Which sectors needs to be improved? What is the cross sectoral co-operation everybody is talking about?  What is the role of religion regarding climate change?

We all know something about some of the questions above and some of us might know almost everything about some of these questions. However, most of us have difficulties understanding the basics of some these question.  I am a climate adaptation researcher who focus on how to adapt urban areas for future floods. Though I understand the physics behind climate and set of action to be taken, my understanding on the climate financing, governance and mitigation aspects of climate change are poor. That is the reason we felt that we have to present the basics about climate change in one place so that it enables a comprehensive understanding of the causes, impacts, challenges and opportunities related to climate change.

Everybody knows something about climate change; Somebody might claim to know everything about climate change; Nobody knows everything about climate change

For most us of the when it comes to climate change Intergovermental Panel on Climate change - well known by their short name  ‘IPCC’ -  is the go to reference page. Let us have look at the video summary of IPCC’s fifth assessment report to find out the answers to these questions