UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres held a news conference recently to offer a familiar doomsday message. He pointed out that it was hot in New York (in July). Then he blamed the phenomenon on “fossil fuel-charged, human-induced climate change.”

He is hardly the first to take this path. Politicians routinely tell us the world will soon collapse. In 2009 (in July, of course), it was England’s Prince Charles who was warning that humanity had just 96 months to avoid “irretrievable climate and ecosystem collapse, and all that goes with it.” Here we are 180 months later, and the biggest change for Charles is he now gets to be King of England. The “ecosystem,” including his realm, remains intact. 

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Politicians need to learn that scare tactics don’t work for events that are far in the future. Instead of trying to frighten people about things that may happen (but probably won’t) in the year 2050 or 2100, we all need to find ways to build a better future together.

Instead of pointing fingers, let’s take reasonable steps to improve the climate while advancing human flourishing. For example, the Secretary-General presents four recommendations. It is worth noting that at least two of them will require using more energy now! 

Guterres says it is crucial to care “for the most vulnerable” and to “step up protections for workers.” Well, protecting the urban poor and those who work outdoors will require more energy and more air conditioning today, tomorrow, and for many summers to come. Whether or not this was his intention, the Secretary-General is calling for new sources of energy to power the responses he says we need. Protecting workers and protecting the poor means providing affordable, dependable energy. Policymakers cannot ignore the costly, undeniable tradeoff where denying access to energy means trapping the most vulnerable populations in poverty.

Capitalizing on energy abundance means saying yes to nuclear energy, geothermal, hydropower, solar and wind. It also means saying yes to cleaner burning fossil fuels like natural gas and continuing to innovate on making abundant resources like coal burn cleaner, while capturing and utilizing their emissions. Then there are potential game-changers like fusion and geological or “natural” hydrogen. Geological hydrogen could be the next “oil boom” or “fracking revolution” that shifts the balance of power for energy resources around the world. 

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Fusion may finally happen in our lifetime with the help of companies like Commonwealth Fusion Systems. We should also be saying yes to experiments in CO2 and methane removal. Pulling methane out of the atmosphere would be a huge step in the right direction if it can be done cost-effectively. Methane could also be used to create materials that are needed for EVs. The answer should be a resounding yes to innovating on all-of-the-above energy resources, rather than telling people to give things up. People don’t want to give things up, and in this case, they don’t have to.

Together, we will find ways to protect the environment and give the billions of humans who are yet unborn a chance at a better life. To get there, humans just need to display resiliency and creativity. Oh, and our leaders need to display some humility, and change how they talk about climate.

The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.