Climate Ambition Summit set to begin to tackle the climate crisis

New Delhi: As the world is facing numerous climate crisis and the global greenhouse gas emissions remain at record levels, the world leaders, business giants, and experts gather to attend the Climate Ambition Summit on Wednesday in New York.

The annual climate gathering coincides with the start of the United Nations General Assembly, to focus on climate change and to adopt serious new actions to combat climate change.

There have been many climate meetings, but this one is unique as it will feature only the “first movers and doers” those leaders who have responded to the Secretary General’s call for accelerated action to tackle the climate crisis.

The climate crisis affects all people and all nations. Half of the world’s population is already living in danger zones, where they are 15 times more likely to die from related impacts, according to the UN.

Close to 70 per cent of all deaths from climate-driven disasters in the last 50 years have occurred in the world’s 46 least developed countries.

“The era of global warming has ended; the era of global boiling has arrived,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said.

“The air is unbreathable, the heat is unbearable, and the level of fossil fuel profits and climate inaction is unacceptable. Leaders must lead. No more hesitancy. No more excuses. No more waiting for others to move first. There is simply no more time for that.”

The science shows clearly that in order to avert the worst impacts of climate change and preserve a liveable planet, the global temperature increase needs to be limited to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

SUMMIT AGENDA

The Summit represents a critical political milestone for demonstrating that there is collective global will to accelerate the pace and scale of a just transition to a more equitable renewable-energy based, climate-resilient global economy.

Government leaders, especially major emitters, are expected to deliver report cards.

They will report on where the stand on honouring their commitments to such landmark treaties as the Paris Agreement on climate change.

In addition, action plans, also called nationally determined contributions (NDCs), are expected. These will include net-zero targets to pledges towards the Green Climate Fund, which supports developing countries to raise and realize their action plans for lowering emissions and building resilience.

All main emitters, and notably all G20 governments, will be asked to commit to presenting, by 2025, more ambitious economy-wide nationally determined contributions featuring absolute emissions cuts and covering all gases.

Summit participants will address challenges and opportunities related to accelerating the decarbonization of high-emitting sectors, including energy, shipping, aviation, steel, and cement industries.

They are expected to unveil actions to mete out climate justice.

A glimpse of what that looks like on the ground includes protecting more people from climate disasters by 2027, and doubling adaptation finance by 2025.

It will also include discussions on operationalizing the Loss and Damage Fund. The first of its kind financing arrangement to help vulnerable nations, the Fund was the crowning outcome at the latest Conference of Parties to the UN Climate Change Convention, commonly called COP 27.