World Leaders Urged to ‘Save Humanity’ at Climate Summit

World Leaders Urged to ‘Save Humanity’ at Climate Summit

Pressure is on governments to redouble their emissions cutting commitments to bring them in line with the Paris goals, and to stump up long-promised cash to help developing nations green their grids and gird against future disaster. (AFP)

World leaders must act to “save humanity”, UN chief Antonio Guterres said Monday as they met for the historic COP26 climate summit with code-red warnings from scientists ringing in their ears.

More than 120 heads of state and government are gathering in Glasgow for a two-day summit at the start of the UN’s COP26 conference, which organizers say is crucial for charting humanity’s path away from catastrophic global warming.

“It’s one minute to midnight... and we need to act now,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said to start proceedings on an at-times chaotic opening day.

COP26 is being billed as vital for the continued viability of the Paris Agreement, which countries signed in 2015 by promising to limit global temperature rises to “well below” two degrees Celsius, and to work for a safer 1.5C cap.

With a little over 1C of warming since the Industrial Revolution, Earth is being battered by ever more extreme heatwaves, flooding and tropical storms supercharged by rising seas.

US President Joe Biden, addressing