The "Doomsday Clock," which is a symbolic countdown to global catastrophe, has been moved two minutes forward, according to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists (BAS), which is warning that the end of humanity might be near.

The nuclear arms race and unchecked climate change have propelled the minute hand of the Doomsday Clock forward two minutes closer to midnight, from its 2012 placement of five minutes to midnight.

The decision was announced in Washington DC by members of BAS, the body behind the calculations and creation of the 1947 Clock of Doom.

The last time the clock was at 3 minutes to midnight was in 1984, when U.S.-Soviet relations were described by BAS as having "reached their iciest point in decades."

Another major problem is the world's addiction to fossil fuels, said BAS. Nuclear tensions and climate change were placed on equal footing in this year's warning.

Kennette Benedict, executive director of BAS, said real cooperation on the international front will rely on there being a demand for that, a mandate for that, from constituencies within countries, also noting today's extremely daunting political opposition to climate action.

Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute, described a series of global existential challenges that could hasten the arrival of doomsday, including the acidity of the oceans, stability of the climate, and biodiversity, as well as widespread goals of strategic stability and the pursuit of dominance.

In light of his analysis, the clock's minute hand can be influenced for the better or for the worse, and 2015 will present opportunities for progress to be made.

Alyn Ware is a member of the World Future Council and the coordinator of Global Wave 2015, an initiative on "Global Action to Wave Goodbye to Nukes." He spoke to IPS ahead of the 2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Ware told IPS that hundreds of billions of dollars that's wasted on nuclear weapons is required to shift our economy from a carbon-based economy to an economy based on renewable energy.

He further explained that the conflicts, competition, conflicts and confrontation that are perpetuated by nuclear weapons prevent the type of cooperation that's needed for addressing climate change.