The turnout at the recently concluded climate summit was impressive, but whether countries redeem their pledges has nothing to do with international politics. Climate change has been attributed to human activities, but naturally occurring events like volcanoes have not been included. An abundance of greenwashing technological solutions is being proposed to replace fossil fuel, such as hydrogen produced from water by electrolysis using renewable energy. However, the technology to capture and store greenhouse gases is unproven and will be expensive, so the hydrogen drive hides major pollution risks. We are where we are today because of technological solutions to cater for growing human population demand and lifestyle, which have damaged the world in two main ways: pollution and depletion of natural resources. Air pollution and water pollution are caused by technologies such as the burning of fossil fuels, factories, power stations, mass agriculture and vehicles. Water pollution is caused by domestic waste, industrial effluents and insecticides and pesticides, while resource depletion is caused by agriculture, mining, water usage and consumption of fossil fuels.