SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
Young climate campaigners march in Blenheim, New Zealand on March 15, 2019. (Photo: Phil Norton/flickr/cc)
The world is "facing a climate emergency" and is "not on track" to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday.
Speaking in Auckland alongside New Zealand's Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, Guterres said, "Climate change is running faster than what we are."
Despite clear manifestations of the climate and ecological crises--including record warm temperatures, a million species at risk of extinction, and atmosphere carbon levels at historic highs--global political leadership is not taking action in line with the needed urgency and scope, he said.
"We are facing a paradox," said Guterres.
"We are feeling clearly by what happens on the ground that things are getting worse, even worse than it was forecast," he added, referencing the recent storms in Mozambique and increasingly frequent droughts.
"We are seeing everywhere a clear demonstration that we are not on track to achieve the objectives defined in the Paris Agreement," Guterres said. "The paradox is that as things are getting worse on the ground, political will seems to be fading."
One outlier to such inaction, said Guterres, is New Zealand. The U.N. chief applauded the country for "leadership" in tackling the climate crisis. It recently unveiled a proposal to be carbon neutral by 2050--though some climate campaigners said that deadline is two decades too late.
On Monday, speaking to a group of youth in Auckland, Guterres praised "the very important leadership that youth around the world is providing" on the climate crisis.
Guterres also laid out steps he said governments should take:
First, shift taxes from salaries to carbon. We must tax pollution not people.
Second stop subsidies to fossil fuels. Taxpayers' money should not be used to boost hurricanes, to spread drought and heatwaves, to bleach corals, or to melt glaciers.
Finally, stop the construction of new coal plants by 2020. We want a green economy not a grey economy in the world.
"We cannot allow for a runaway climate change," Guterres said Sunday. "We need to protect the lives of all people and we need to protect our planet."
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
The world is "facing a climate emergency" and is "not on track" to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday.
Speaking in Auckland alongside New Zealand's Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, Guterres said, "Climate change is running faster than what we are."
Despite clear manifestations of the climate and ecological crises--including record warm temperatures, a million species at risk of extinction, and atmosphere carbon levels at historic highs--global political leadership is not taking action in line with the needed urgency and scope, he said.
"We are facing a paradox," said Guterres.
"We are feeling clearly by what happens on the ground that things are getting worse, even worse than it was forecast," he added, referencing the recent storms in Mozambique and increasingly frequent droughts.
"We are seeing everywhere a clear demonstration that we are not on track to achieve the objectives defined in the Paris Agreement," Guterres said. "The paradox is that as things are getting worse on the ground, political will seems to be fading."
One outlier to such inaction, said Guterres, is New Zealand. The U.N. chief applauded the country for "leadership" in tackling the climate crisis. It recently unveiled a proposal to be carbon neutral by 2050--though some climate campaigners said that deadline is two decades too late.
On Monday, speaking to a group of youth in Auckland, Guterres praised "the very important leadership that youth around the world is providing" on the climate crisis.
Guterres also laid out steps he said governments should take:
First, shift taxes from salaries to carbon. We must tax pollution not people.
Second stop subsidies to fossil fuels. Taxpayers' money should not be used to boost hurricanes, to spread drought and heatwaves, to bleach corals, or to melt glaciers.
Finally, stop the construction of new coal plants by 2020. We want a green economy not a grey economy in the world.
"We cannot allow for a runaway climate change," Guterres said Sunday. "We need to protect the lives of all people and we need to protect our planet."
The world is "facing a climate emergency" and is "not on track" to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday.
Speaking in Auckland alongside New Zealand's Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, Guterres said, "Climate change is running faster than what we are."
Despite clear manifestations of the climate and ecological crises--including record warm temperatures, a million species at risk of extinction, and atmosphere carbon levels at historic highs--global political leadership is not taking action in line with the needed urgency and scope, he said.
"We are facing a paradox," said Guterres.
"We are feeling clearly by what happens on the ground that things are getting worse, even worse than it was forecast," he added, referencing the recent storms in Mozambique and increasingly frequent droughts.
"We are seeing everywhere a clear demonstration that we are not on track to achieve the objectives defined in the Paris Agreement," Guterres said. "The paradox is that as things are getting worse on the ground, political will seems to be fading."
One outlier to such inaction, said Guterres, is New Zealand. The U.N. chief applauded the country for "leadership" in tackling the climate crisis. It recently unveiled a proposal to be carbon neutral by 2050--though some climate campaigners said that deadline is two decades too late.
On Monday, speaking to a group of youth in Auckland, Guterres praised "the very important leadership that youth around the world is providing" on the climate crisis.
Guterres also laid out steps he said governments should take:
First, shift taxes from salaries to carbon. We must tax pollution not people.
Second stop subsidies to fossil fuels. Taxpayers' money should not be used to boost hurricanes, to spread drought and heatwaves, to bleach corals, or to melt glaciers.
Finally, stop the construction of new coal plants by 2020. We want a green economy not a grey economy in the world.
"We cannot allow for a runaway climate change," Guterres said Sunday. "We need to protect the lives of all people and we need to protect our planet."