Governments' inaction on climate is 'dangerous': UN chief Guterres

UN chief Antonio Guterres warned of a dangerous disconnect between what scientists and citizens are demanding to curb climate change, and what governments are actually doing about it

Antonio Guterres
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
AP Berlin
2 min read Last Updated : Jun 14 2022 | 2:56 PM IST

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Tuesday of a dangerous disconnect between what scientists and citizens are demanding to curb climate change, and what governments are actually doing about it.

Guterres said global greenhouse gas emissions need to drop by 45 per cent this decade, but are currently forecast to increase by 14 per cent.

We are witnessing a historic and dangerous disconnect: science and citizens are demanding ambitious and transformative climate action, he said at a climate conference in Austria. Meanwhile many governments are dragging their feet. This inaction has grave consequences.

Guterres said Russia's war in Ukraine risked worsening the crisis, because major economies were doubling down on fossil fuels that are to blame for much of the emissions stoking global warming.

New funding for fossil fuel exploration and production infrastructure is delusional, he said in a video message to the Austrian World Summit, initiated by former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. It will only further feed the scourge of war, pollution and climate catastrophe.

Guterres urged countries to instead end all coal use by 2040, with rich nations doing so by 2030, and focus on replacing fossil fuels with renewable sources of energy, such as solar and wind power.

Renewables are the peace plan of the 21st century, he said.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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Topics :Climate ChangeAntonio GuterresUnited Nations

First Published: Jun 14 2022 | 2:54 PM IST

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