The world will be lucky to avoid 2.5C of warming, but emerging technology can help avoid worse, Bill Gates told an audience in Sydney.
The American billionaire and philanthropist told the Lowy Institute on Monday that while malaria still kills more children (400,000 a year), the climate crisis “was worth investing in massively because it will get worse and worse over time.”
There was “no chance” of limiting warming to the Paris climate target of 1.5°C compared to pre-industrial levels, and it was “highly unlikely” that it could be held to 2°C, Gates said.
“The key is to minimize warming as much as possible,” he said. “At this point, staying below 2.5°C would be fantastic. I think that’s possible.”
Gates remains among the richest people in the world, despite giving away $35 billion ($50 billion) through mid-2022, along with his ex-wife, Melinda Gates, and pledging another 20 billion dollars.
Although the foundation bears our names, basically half of our resources come from Warren Buffett. His incredible generosity is a big reason why the foundation has been able to be so ambitious. I will never be able to adequately express how much I appreciate your friendship and guidance. pic.twitter.com/at7MvJKxQv
—Bill Gates (@BillGates) July 13, 2022
When asked about the policies of the government led by Anthony Albanese, whom Gates met over the weekend, the Microsoft founder said it was “great to have Australia on board for climate” after the country had been an “outlier until recently”.
The country was “very blessed” with the renewable energy resources and minerals needed for a transition away from carbon. “Australia is weird because the opportunities outweigh what you have to give up,” she said.
Gates said his investment in Perth-based firm Rumin8, announced on mondayIt was his 103rd foray into climate startups, from energy and aircraft to steel. Rumin8 aims to reduce methane emissions from livestock.
Nuclear fission and fusion were “very, very promising” energy sources that did not depend on weather for their generation, he said.
Still, he said the government’s approach of waiting 15 years to prove that small modular reactor technology was safe and cheap and that waste could be managed “was a very good move.”
“I don’t know if it will be successful,” he said. “I have put billions of dollars into [nuclear technology]so I must think there is some possibility.
“Even if nuclear power is successful, we will still need 60 to 70% renewables,” Gates said. “I think the world is not investing enough in those [nuclear] innovations because they could make a big difference.”
On other issues, Gates said there were still “huge factors driving global trade,” even with a “fear of China dependency.” These include the cross-border need for copper, lithium and cobalt “as part of the green energy revolution.”
“It is sad that we are evolving towards a world where [there’s] the willingness, certainly of the US, to be independent of things in China,” he said. “It will create significant inefficiencies if globalization goes backwards.”
Still, Gates said he was hopeful that major breakthroughs to address many health and other issues were still possible.
“We will cure obesity, we will cure cancer, we will eradicate polio,” he said. “I remain very optimistic that it will be much better to be born 20, 40, 60 years from now than [at] any time in the past.”
