National Call to Action on Global Warming

The Union of Concerned Scientists and various endorsing organizations call for U.S. legislation to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius. The proposal advocates for economy-wide emission cuts of 25% by 2020 and 80% by 2050 (relative to 1990 levels), the implementation of a cap-and-auction system to fund mitigation and climate justice, and a strategic shift toward renewable energy and energy efficiency to create green-collar jobs and protect vulnerable communities.

• To avoid the most severe effects of global warming, there is scientific consensus that additional warming must be limited to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
• The document proposes specific U.S. pollution reduction targets: a minimum 25% reduction in total economy-wide emissions by 2020 and 80% by 2050, compared to 1990 levels. To achieve this, absolute emissions from fossil fuels should drop by 8-14% below 1990 levels by 2020.
• The authors advocate for a cap-and-auction system where all pollution allowances are auctioned, with the resulting revenue—estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars annually—used for mitigation, assisting affected workers and consumers, and funding adaptation in developing countries.
• The transition to a clean energy economy is presented as an opportunity to create millions of green-collar jobs and address climate justice, specifically protecting communities of color and low-income households from the physical and economic impacts of warming.
• The document calls for a prohibition on new coal-fired power plants that cannot sequester the vast majority of their carbon dioxide emissions and suggests phasing out coal exports to countries lacking comparable carbon control programs.
• International leadership is requested to facilitate an equitable climate agreement at the 2009 Copenhagen climate summit and to finance clean energy and forest protection in developing nations.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (n.d.). National Call to Action on Global Warming. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2018/02/National_Call_to_Action%255B1%255D.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. National Call to Action on Global Warming. n.d. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2018/02/National_Call_to_Action%255B1%255D.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=National Call to Action on Global Warming |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2018/02/National_Call_to_Action%255B1%255D.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{unionofconcernedscientistsndnational, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{National Call to Action on Global Warming}}, publisher = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2018/02/National_Call_to_Action%255B1%255D.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }