The UN Secretary-General speaks
on the state of the planet
On 2 December at Columbia University, the UN Secretary-General delivered a landmark speech on the state of the planet, setting the stage for dramatically scaled-up ambition on climate change over the coming year. See excerpts below, or download or watch the speech. More information here
The state of the planet is broken
Humanity is waging war on nature.
Nature always strikes back – and it is already doing so with growing force and fury.
The fallout of the assault on our planet is impeding our efforts to eliminate poverty and imperiling food security.
And it is making our work for peace even more difficult, as the disruptions drive instability, displacement and conflict.
Make peace with nature
Nature needs a bailout. In overcoming the pandemic, we can also avert climate cataclysm and restore our planet.
The trillions of dollars needed for COVID recovery is money that we are borrowing from future generations.
We cannot use those resources to lock in policies that burden them with a mountain of debt on a broken planet.
It is time to flick the “green switch”. We have a chance to not simply reset the world economy but to transform it.
Start carbon neutrality, now
By early next year, countries representing more than 65 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions and more than 70 per cent of the world economy will have made ambitious commitments to carbon neutrality.
We must turn this momentum into a movement. The central objective of the United Nations for 2021 is to build a truly Global Coalition for Carbon Neutrality.
Every country, city, financial institution and company should adopt plans for transitioning to net zero emissions by 2050…(and take) decisive action now.
Put global finance to work for climate
The commitments to net zero emissions are sending a clear signal to investors, markets and finance ministers. But we need to go further.
It is time to put a price on carbon. To phase out fossil fuel finance and end fossil fuel subsidies. To stop building new coal power plants.
(It is time) to integrate the goal of carbon neutrality into all economic and fiscal policies and decisions. And to make climate-related financial risk disclosures mandatory.
Protect the most vulnerable
We are in a race against time to adapt to a rapidly changing climate.
Adaptation must not be the forgotten component of climate action. We have both a moral imperative and a clear economic case for supporting developing countries to adapt and build resilience to current and future climate impacts.
The race to resilience is as important as the race to net zero.
Act with urgency – and hope
This is a moment of truth for people and planet alike. COVID and climate have brought us to a threshold.
We cannot go back to the old normal of inequality, injustice and heedless dominion over the Earth. Instead we must step towards a safer, more sustainable and equitable path. The door is open; the solutions are there.
Now is the time to transform humankind’s relationship with the natural world – and with each other. And we must do so together.
Solidarity is humanity. Solidarity is survival.
Climate action facts
- Warming beyond 1.5°C will substantially increase the risk of global species extinctions.
- The ocean is already warmer, more acidic and less productive.
- Around 7 million people die every year from exposure to polluted air.
- Nature-based solutions could provide one third of net reductions in greenhouse gas emissions required to meet Paris Agreement goals.
- Bold climate action could deliver $26 trillion in economic benefits by 2030.
- Renewable energy is getting cheaper all the time.
- Switching to a clean economy could produce over 65 million new low-carbon jobs.
- An investment of $1.8 trillion from 2020 to 2030 in adaptation could generate $7.1 trillion in total net benefits.
Learn more, act more
The Production Gap Report
The world must cut fossil fuel production by 6 per cent per year to avoid the worst of global warming. Instead, countries are projecting an average annual increase of 2 per cent. Those are among the sobering findings of the latest Production Gap Report, issued by leading research organizations and the United Nations. The report urges making COVID-19 recovery a turning point, where countries should steer investments into changing course to avoid “locking in” dependence on polluting coal, oil and gas.
State of the Global Climate in 2020
The Emissions Gap Report on needed emissions cuts. 2020 will likely be one of three warmest years on record, according to the provisional 2020 WMO State of the Global Climate report. Ocean heat is at record levels. Extreme heat, wildfires and floods, as well as a record-breaking Atlantic hurricane season, have affected millions of people. Climate impacts are compounding threats to human health, security and economic stability posed by COVID-19. Even with pandemic lockdowns slowing economic activity, atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases continued to rise.
Act Now!
Every one of us can help limit global warming and take care of our planet. By changing our habits and making choices that have less harmful effects on the environment, we have the power to confront the climate challenge and build a more sustainable world. Learn what you can do to stop climate change.