IPPC releases 3rd report this week

The report says that in order to mitigate global warming, we need to make major cuts in greenhouse gas emissions over the next 50 years. However, this should only cost a small fraction of the world's economic output.

To keep within the 2-degree threshold that scientists and the European Union say is needed to avoid disastrous changes to the world's climate, emissions need to drop between 50 and 85 percent by 2050. Technological advances in energy production plus energy efficiency measures worldwide will enable us to achieve this level of reduction. This includes lifestyle changes like turning down the thermostat and eating less red meat (which would cut animal methane).

See Scientfic American: Beating global warming need not cost the earth: U.N.