UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Wednesday that humanity’s addiction to fossil fuels had “opened the gates of hell.” He emphasized that it was not too late “to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5°C.”
Antonio Guterres’ strong words highlighted the “terrible heat” and “historic wildfires” this year, but he also stressed that it was not too late “to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5°C.”
“The future is not yet written: it is up to you, the leaders, to write it,” he cautioned while launching a summit on combating climate change, without the participation of China and the United States. He added, “We can still build a world with clean air, green jobs, and clean and affordable energy for all.”
A Summit of Common Sense Despite the increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, greenhouse gas emissions responsible for rising temperatures continue to rise, and the fossil fuel sector is reaping record profits. Therefore, Antonio Guterres convened this “common sense” summit where invited leaders are expected to announce specific actions to fulfill their commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement.
On Tuesday, in his speech to the UN General Assembly, he made it clear that he intended to only welcome “actors capable of making a difference.” After receiving over a hundred responses from countries justifying their actions, the UN finally released the list of attendees on Tuesday evening. Notably absent from the list are the two largest greenhouse gas emitters: the United States, despite President Joe Biden being in New York, and China, whose president did not attend the annual General Assembly.
