Failure is not an option. Australia must radically scale up its climate targets now WillSteffenfortheConversation To contribute fairly to keeping warming well below 2C, we have to cut emissions by 75% this decade – a daunting but achievable task ‘The consequences of breaching 1.5C will be stark. Heatwaves, droughts, bushfires and intense rain events will become more severe. Sea levels will rise, species will become extinct and crop yields will fall.’ Photograph: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images ‘The consequences of breaching 1.5C will be stark. Heatwaves, droughts, bushfires and intense rain events will become more severe. Sea levels will rise, species will become extinct and crop yields will fall.’ Photograph: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images