Global warming has a wide range of practical solutions, many of which are already scaling rapidly. They fall into a few broad categories: replacing fossil fuels with clean energy, removing carbon that’s already in the atmosphere, changing how we eat and build, and using economic policy to accelerate all of the above. No single solution is enough on its own, but taken together, they form a realistic path to limiting temperature rise.
Scaling Renewable Energy
The fastest-moving solution is the shift from fossil fuels to renewable electricity. Renewables supplied 32% of global electricity in 2024, and that share is projected to reach 43% by 2030. The pace is accelerating: global renewable power capacity is expected to grow by nearly 4,600 gigawatts between 2025 and 2030, double the deployment of the previous five years.
Solar is doing most of the heavy lifting, accounting for nearly 80% of new renewable capacity worldwide. Wind power follows, with onshore wind additions expected to increase 45% compared to the prior five-year period. Offshore wind capacity is on track to more than double. Hydropower is growing more modestly, with over 154 gigawatts of new capacity expected by 2030.
The challenge with solar and wind is that they produce power only when the sun shines or the wind blows. That’s where energy storage comes in. Utility-scale battery systems currently cost around $334 per kilowatt-hour for a four-hour system, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Costs are projected to fall to somewhere between $147 and $339 per kilowatt-hour by 2035, depending on the pace of innovation. Cheaper batteries make it possible to store midday solar power and release it in the evening, turning intermittent sources into reliable ones.
Electrifying Transportation
Transportation is one of the largest sources of emissions, and electrification is transforming it faster than many predicted. In 2025, battery electric vehicles made up 16.1% of global light vehicle sales, a 29% jump from the year before. By 2026, that figure is expected to reach about 19%. When you include plug-in hybrids and range-extended models, roughly 30% of all vehicles sold globally in 2026 will have a plug.
Electric vehicles eliminate tailpipe emissions entirely. Their climate benefit grows as the grid they charge from gets cleaner, which is why the renewable energy buildout and EV adoption reinforce each other. Beyond personal cars, electrification is spreading to buses, delivery trucks, and even short-haul shipping, though heavy freight and aviation remain harder to decarbonize and will likely need alternative fuels like green hydrogen.
Reducing Emissions From Food
The food system generates roughly a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, and two changes could cut that significantly: shifting what we eat and changing how we raise livestock.
Diets that exclude animal products could reduce food-related greenhouse gas emissions by 49% and free up 76% of the land currently used for food production, about 3.1 billion hectares. You don’t have to go fully vegan to make a difference. Even partial shifts, like replacing some meat with plant-based alternatives, meaningfully reduce both emissions and land use. One U.S.-focused estimate found that replacing all meat with plant-based options would save about 34% of dietary land use.
On the livestock side, one of the most promising developments involves feeding cattle a specific red seaweed. In controlled trials, beef steers fed this supplement reduced their methane emissions by up to 80% when given higher doses with grain-heavy diets. Even on high-forage diets, methane dropped by over 50%. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, roughly 80 times more warming than CO2 over a 20-year window, so these reductions matter enormously. The challenge is scaling seaweed production and integrating it into feed supply chains worldwide.
Restoring Forests and Natural Ecosystems
Trees pull carbon dioxide out of the air and lock it into wood, roots, and soil. A widely cited analysis led by researchers at ETH-Zurich estimated that Earth’s ecosystems could support an additional 900 million hectares of forest, a 25% increase over current forested area. Planting more than half a trillion trees could capture roughly 205 gigatons of carbon, reducing atmospheric carbon by about 25%.
That figure represents an upper bound under ideal conditions, not a guaranteed outcome. Reforestation takes decades to reach full carbon-absorbing potential, and it only works if the new forests are protected from logging, fire, and development. Mangrove restoration, peatland rewetting, and soil carbon management in agricultural lands offer additional, sometimes overlooked, sequestration benefits. These nature-based approaches are relatively low-cost compared to engineered solutions, but they require sustained political commitment and careful land-use planning.
Pulling Carbon Directly From the Air
Even with aggressive emissions cuts, most climate models show we’ll also need to remove CO2 that’s already in the atmosphere. Direct air capture (DAC) technology does exactly that: industrial facilities use chemical processes to filter CO2 from ambient air, then store it underground or use it in products.
The technology works, but it’s still extremely small and expensive. Twenty-seven DAC plants have been commissioned worldwide, collectively capturing less than 10,000 tons of CO2 per year. Only three plants capture 1,000 tons or more annually, located in Iceland, Colorado, and California. Current costs range from $600 to $1,000 per ton of CO2 removed, far above what’s economically viable at scale. For comparison, planting trees costs a fraction of that per ton.
Government incentives are helping close the gap. The U.S. offers a tax credit of $180 per ton for CO2 captured via DAC and stored, which lowers the effective cost for operators. As the technology matures and scales, costs are expected to fall, following a pattern similar to what happened with solar panels over the past two decades.
Nuclear Power and Advanced Reactors
Nuclear energy produces virtually no greenhouse gas emissions during operation and provides steady, round-the-clock power that complements intermittent renewables. A new generation of small modular reactors (SMRs) aims to make nuclear cheaper, faster to build, and safer than conventional large plants. These reactors are factory-built in standardized units, reducing construction times and costs.
Progress has been slower than advocates hoped. Four SMRs are currently in advanced stages of construction, in Argentina, China, and Russia, while several other countries are conducting research and development. If these early projects prove commercially viable, SMRs could play a meaningful role in decarbonizing grids, particularly in regions where land constraints or weather patterns limit renewable potential.
Making Buildings More Efficient
Buildings account for a large share of energy consumption, mostly through heating, cooling, and hot water. Switching from gas-fired boilers and furnaces to electric heat pumps is one of the most effective ways to cut household emissions. Heat pumps work by moving heat rather than generating it through combustion, making them two to four times more energy-efficient than conventional systems. In climates where electricity comes from clean sources, the emissions savings are dramatic.
Beyond heating, improved insulation, better windows, LED lighting, and smart thermostats all reduce the energy a building needs in the first place. Retrofitting existing buildings is slower and more expensive than building new efficient ones, but it’s essential since most of the buildings that will exist in 2050 have already been built.
Carbon Pricing and Economic Policy
Technology alone isn’t enough without economic incentives that push businesses and consumers toward cleaner choices. Over 50 countries have now implemented some form of carbon pricing, whether through carbon taxes, emissions trading systems, or fuel excise taxes. As of 2023, 44% of global emissions were subject to a positive carbon price.
The prices vary enormously. Only about 16% of global emissions faced a rate above €30 per ton of CO2, and just 11% faced a rate above €60 per ton. Most economists estimate that prices need to be significantly higher to drive the deep emissions cuts required. The European Union’s emissions trading system, one of the most mature, has pushed prices above €50 per ton at times, which has measurably accelerated the switch from coal to gas and renewables in the power sector. Carbon border adjustments, where countries impose fees on imports from nations without equivalent carbon pricing, are emerging as a way to prevent industries from simply relocating their pollution.
Subsidies work from the other direction. Tax credits for renewable energy, EV purchase incentives, and rebates for heat pump installations have proven effective at speeding adoption. The most impactful climate policies combine both: making pollution more expensive while making clean alternatives cheaper.