Solutions to the problem can be applied at a number of levels. On the international level, we need a strong climate treaty that aims to reduce emissions so that the world's temperature rises by less than 1.5 degrees. This needs to be a fair agreement, that reflects the historic responsibility of the rich nations for CO2 emissions, and respects the right of poor nations to develop their economies using clean technologies. Rather than relying on techno-fixes like nuclear power and carbon capture and storage, or economic schemes like carbon trading, this agreement needs to tackle the root cause of the problem by drastically reducing the amount of fossil fuels we burn and the amount of energy we waste. The next chance for a global treaty to be agreed is the Cancún climate talks in December 2010.

On the national level, the Climate Change Act became law in November 2008, after a huge grassroots lobbying campaign from Friends of the Earth called The Big Ask, which called on MPs around the country to put their support behind the Act. The Climate Change Act was the first national-level law to commit a country to legally binding annual cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, and is a good first step towards making sure that the UK plays a strong role in keeping global temperatures below danger levels.

Although the Act should bind our government to work towards a reduction in greenhouse gases like CO2, we now need to make sure that these good intentions are turned into action by creating Low Carbon Communities across the country. In Birmingham, these opportunities and challenges are being taken up: the Birmingham Strategic Partnership (consisting of the city council and other major bodies) has now drafted a Climate Change Strategy, and with a rapidly growing expertise in lifestyle change and new technology, and continued input from campaigning groups like Birmingham Friends of the Earth, the city's ambitious goals to cut carbon emissions and meet the challenge of climate change can (and must) be met.