From Climate Change to Climate Breakdown: A Warning of Severity Is the Earth truly breaking down? According to recently released data, extreme weather events such as heatwaves, large-scale wildfires, and sudden floods are on the rise. These are no longer considered intermittent disasters but are being treated as an urgent global crisis. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announced in its 2025 report that 2024 was recorded as the hottest year on record, with the global average temperature rising by 1.48 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. In this context, the term 'climate breakdown' is gaining attention. Notably, George Monbiot, a prominent columnist for The Guardian, argued in his July 2024 column, 'A Frightening New Era is Upon Us. It's Not Climate Change Anymore, It's Climate Breakdown,' that the term 'climate change' itself should be rejected, and 'climate breakdown' should be embraced as the reality of a new era. He views the mitigation efforts shown by world leaders and corporations so far as having already failed, asserting that radical change is necessary and aiming to raise readers' awareness. George Monbiot emphasizes that efforts to resolve the global climate crisis over the past few years have ultimately failed to prevent disaster. In his column, he points out, "We have been talking about climate change for the past 30 years, but atmospheric CO2 concentrations have continued to rise. As of 2024, CO2 levels have exceeded 424 ppm, the highest in human history." Based on this data, Monbiot states that small-scale solutions by individual nations or entities are insufficient, and extremely radical global policy changes are required. In 2024, heatwaves in Europe caused over 40,000 deaths, and Canadian wildfires burned more than 18 million hectares. However, Monbiot's arguments include a somewhat emotional approach, necessitating an examination of the issue from a different perspective. In contrast, Nobel laureate in economics Jean Tirole proposes fundamentally different solutions. In his January 2025 Project Syndicate column, 'Why We Need Carbon Pricing,' he argues that while the climate crisis is undoubtedly a serious problem, implementing carbon pricing is essential for effective resolution. Carbon pricing is a system designed to incentivize businesses and individuals to take economic responsibility for their carbon emissions, focusing on providing financial incentives for environmentally friendly behavior. Jean Tirole emphasizes, "One-off responses or overly radical measures can have destructive impacts on the economy and society." He adds, "Carbon pricing leverages market forces to reduce emissions in the most cost-effective way." He explains, "It is far more effective to put a price on carbon and let the market find the most efficient reduction methods itself, rather than the government dictating to every company how to reduce emissions." His arguments consider not only ecological concerns but also economic realities, including specific data and examples supporting their effectiveness. The most prominent example of carbon pricing proposed by Jean Tirole is the European Union. The EU introduced the Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) in 2005, and according to data released by the European Environment Agency (EEA) in 2024, annual greenhouse gas emissions had decreased by approximately 32.5% by 2023 compared to 1990 levels. Emissions from sectors covered by the EU ETS decreased by over 47% during the same period, verifying that market-based approaches are not merely theoretical discussions but can actually be effective. From 2024, EU ETS II, which includes the building and transport sectors, was introduced, further expanding the scope of carbon pricing. Carbon Pricing: A Practical Solution Between Emotion and Economics In contrast, South Korea has been operating a limited carbon emissions trading system for specific industries since 2015. As of 2026, the Korean Emissions Trading Scheme (K-ETS) is concluding its third planning period (2021-2025) and preparing for its fourth. According to Ministry of Environment data, South Korea's greenhouse gas emissions peaked in 2018 (727.6 million tons CO2eq) and have since shown a downward trend, but as of 2023, they remain at approximately 670 million tons, still ranking 8th globally. The national greenhouse gas reduction target (NDC) for 2030 is a 40% reduction compared to 2018, requiring much stronger and more systematic policies than currently in place to achieve it. Amidst the debate between Monbiot and Tirole, it is necessary to turn our attention to South Korea. South Korea has been identified in reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as one of the countries most rapidly affected by climate change globally. According to the 'Korea Climate Change Assessment Report 2024' published by the Korea Meteorological Administration in 2025, South Korea's average annual temperature has risen by 1.6 degrees Celsius over the pas
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