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WASHINGTON
As President Joe Biden's 'Leaders Summit on Climate' unfolds today, April 22, through tomorrow, Friday, April 23, communities around the world are escalating the demand for immediate and more ambitious climate action. This week's events are a key milestone on the road to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) this November in Glasgow.
Commitments from the Biden administration, including reports of a 50% reduction of emissions at 2005 levels by 2030, fall short of the United States's fair share of global climate action. Top officials from the Biden administration, including Gina McCarthy, met with oil and gas executives last month, yet failed to meet with Black, Indigenous, and frontline leaders of color who are most impacted, and who must be centered in real climate solutions.
"On Day 1 in office, Biden cancelled Keystone XL. Now he must do the same with Line 3, the Dakota Access pipeline, and all new fossil fuel projects. There can be no meaningful climate action if we don't keep all fossil fuels in the ground. By doing so, Biden will show the world that the U.S. is serious about facing the climate crisis at scale and centering the communities most impacted," said Natalie Mebane, U.S. Policy Director of 350.org.
Biden must go beyond promises, and take immediate action to stop the bad, build the good, and repair harm. This includes drastically increasing emission reduction targets to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by doing what science and justice demand:
Stop approving all new fossil fuel projects and shut down Line 3, Dakota Access, and all fossil fuel projects that violate Indigenous sovereignty, pollute and poison communities, drive up emissions and fuel the climate crisis.
Stop funding the problem. The US government must cut off the flow of funding to fossil fuels from all institutions and invest in job creation, renewable energy, sustainable infrastructure, and support the frontline communities that are hardest hit by climate change.
Declare a climate emergency to lead a clean energy revolution, invest in historically marginalized communities, and create millions of good union jobs.
Yesterday, a global petition with over 300,000 signatures, was delivered to the Biden administration, underscoring that to Build Back Better, we must #BuildBackFossilFree.
As part of the day of actions leading up to the Summit, youth strikers, climate impacted communities, and climate and environmental justice activists with 350.org, the Build Back Fossil Free coalition, Fossil Free Bailout, and more delivered the Climate Clock to the Biden administration. The climate clock, which has been on display in New York, Union Square is a reminder of the urgent need to take immediate climate action at scale.
"By using the Climate Clock as a tool, we are pressuring world governments to take bold action for a just recovery from the compound crisis our communities are facing from COVID-19, climate impacts, and racial and economic injustice" said Thanu Yakupitiyage, 350.org US Communications Director. "President Biden It's time for Biden to be a real Climate President, show the world that the U.S. is serious about keeping fossil fuels in the ground, and lead by example on the world stage. Biden needs to go beyond promises and take immediate action to stop the bad, build the good, and repair the harm. "
Glasgow City Council and UK youth climate activists light-projected a CLIMATE CLOCK onto Glasgow's landmark Tolbooth Steeple. Like its counterpart in Union Square, New York, the Glasgow CLIMATE CLOCK will count down the time until the threshold of carbon emissions for 1.5 degrees of warming is exceeded, and show the percentage of the world's energy that is generated from renewable sources. It will run continuously every night for the six months from Earth Day until the COP26 begins, turning the eyes of the world to the upcoming UN Summit in November.
"There can be no meaningful climate action if world leaders don't make a decisive move to keep all fossil fuels in the ground. The Biden Summit is a critical meeting of world leaders ahead of COP26 this November. Talk of "net-zero" won't cut it: we demand more from our world leaders than false promises, false solutions and empty negotiations at Biden's Climate Summit," added Agnes Hall, Global Campaigns Director at 350.org. "The task now is to hold politicians to their lofty words, and to do that the global climate movement needs to keep up the pressure on our governments at home as well as on the international stage to take urgent action now to reduce carbon emissions and ensure a Just Recovery by creating a sustainable, fossil-free world.
350 is building a future that's just, prosperous, equitable and safe from the effects of the climate crisis. We're an international movement of ordinary people working to end the age of fossil fuels and build a world of community-led renewable energy for all.
LATEST NEWS
'1.5ºC Is Dead': Climate Movement Holds Funeral for Paris Agreement Target
Almost a decade ago, parties to the Paris treaty agreed to work toward limiting temperature rise this century to 1.5ºC—but 2024 was the hottest year in human history, and countries around the world show no signs of reining in planet-wrecking fossil fuels anywhere near the degree that scientists warn is necessary to prevent catastrophic climate breakdown.
"Crossing 1.5ºC for a whole calendar year is a wake-up call for the world," said Olympic gold medalist and XR U.K. spokesperson Etienne Stott, highlighting another alarming record from last year. "If we want to avoid crossing further tipping points we need a complete transformation of society."
Extinction Rebellion and other climate groups held a funeral for the Paris agreement's 1.5°C temperature target in Cambridge, England on May 10, 2025. (Photo: Derek Langley)
Scientists from universities in the United Kingdom and Germany warned in a peer-reviewed paper published in the journal Earth System Dynamics last month that humankind is at risk of triggering various climate tipping points absent urgent action to dramatically reduce emissions from fossil fuels.
"There are levers policymakers can pull to rapidly phase out fossil fuels, but this requires standing up to powerful interests," Stott said Saturday. "Activists need to build power, resilience, and the world we want to see in our communities; but we also need to keep seeking the spark that will cause the worldwide transformation we need to see."
In addition to the Cambridge and U.K. arms of Extinction Rebellion, Saturday's action was organized by Cambridge Greenpeace, Cambridge Stop the War, and the Organization of Radical Cambridge Activists (ORCA).
Varsity, the independent student newspaper at the University of Cambridge, reported that the marchers "rallied at Christ's Pieces, where they heard from one of the organizers, who emphasised the harm caused by exceeding 1.5ºC of warming."
"The march then proceeded up Christ's Lane and down Sidney Street, led by a group of 'Red Rebels,' dressed in red robes with faces painted white, followed by 'pall bearers' carrying coffins painted black, with the words 'Inaction Is Death' in white," according to Varsity. "The procession was completed by a samba band who drummed as they walked, followed by protesters carrying a large sign reading 'Don't silence the science,' along with many other smaller placards."
Members of the "Red Rebel Brigade" led a procession around Cambridge, England as part of a funeral for the Paris agreement's 1.5°C temperature target on May 10, 2025. (Photo: Derek Langley)
Photos from organizers show participants displaying banners with messages such as "No Future on a Dead Planet," and additional messages painted on the black coffins: "1.5ºC Is Dead," "Act Now," "Ecocide," "RIP Earth," and "Web of Life."
"Politicians have broken their promises to keep global temperature rises to a livable 1.5ºC," declared Zoe Flint, a spokesperson for XR Cambridge. "For decades, people around the world have been resisting environmental devastation in their own communities and beyond—often facing state repression and violence as a result."
"With dozens of political protesters now in prison in this country, that repression has come to the U.K. too," Flint noted. "But when those least responsible for climate breakdown suffer the worst effects, we can't afford to give up the fight."
Parties to the Paris agreement are set to gather next in November at the United Nations climate summit, COP30, in Belém, Brazil.
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