Australians have played a leading role in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [[IPCC]] Synthesis report.
The IPCC is an intergovernmental body of the United Nations charged with advancing scientific knowledge about environmental change caused or influenced by people, either directly or indirectly.
Its report summarises what the world knows about climate change so far.
It confirms humans have caused global warming and damaging greenhouse gas emissions are continuing to increase.
Professor Mark Howden, from the Australian National University, says it’s clear that vulnerable groups are disproportionately affected by climate change.
"Impacts, on balance, tend to be negative rather than positive so that has actually generated widespread problematic impacts to lives, to livelihoods and to natural systems."
The report shows climate change is affecting weather extremes in all parts of the world.
A child born today is likely to face three to four times as many extreme weather events over their lifetime than their grandparents did.
As net emissions from all major sectors continue to rise, with energy, industry, transport and building accounting for 79 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2019, Professor Howden warns the world is becoming more unsafe for the next generation - but he says there is some hope.
"Admidst all of those messages of increasing risk I think there needs to be also be message of increasing capacity to deal with this, if we choose to do so."
