UN wants to showcase ambitious countries at climate summit

Hoping to spur international action on climate change, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has told world leaders that only the most ambitious carbon-cutting countries will be showcased at a key summit in September.

In a note sent to member states, Guterres outlined plans for an “action-oriented” summit featuring a wide range of “deliverables” from governments to inject new impetus to the fight against global warming.

“It will be a summit of showcasing ambitious proposals for climate action and implementation,” said the four-page document sent to UN member-states and seen by AFP on Tuesday.

The September 23 summit at the United Nations is billed as the first major stock-taking gathering of world leaders on climate change since the Paris agreement was reached in 2015.

The event follows a string of reports containing dire predictions about the future of the planet as carbon dioxide emissions continue to rise, pushing targets set out under the Paris accord further out of reach.

President Donald Trump’s 2017 decision to pull the United States out of the Paris accord will also cast a cloud over the summit that will be held on the sidelines of the General Assembly meeting in New York.

In the document, Guterres asked countries to present “concrete, realistic plans” to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent over the next decade and to net zero by 2050.

Setting up a selection process similar to a contest, the United Nations will convene a meeting in Abu Dhabi on June 30-July 1 to pick the most ambitious proposals to take center stage at the summit.

To make the cut, countries will have to come up with plans that have a “transformational impact” that breaks new ground or aims at “dramatically scaling up an existing initiative.”

The chosen proposals will be innovative, inclusive and have the ability to be replicated across sectors or regions, said the document sent to member-states last week.

Countries chosen to be in the summit spotlight will earn recognition as leaders on climate change and arguably a bigger say in crafting the world’s response to what the United Nations has called the defining issue of our time, UN officials say.

 

UN wants to showcase ambitious countries at climate summit

Hoping to spur international action on climate change, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has told world leaders that only the most ambitious carbon-cutting countries will be showcased at a key summit in September. In a note sent to member states, Guterres outlined plans for an action-oriented summit featuring a wide range of deliverables from governments to inject new impetus to the fight against global warming. It will be a summit of showcasing ambitious proposals for climate action and implementation, said the four-page document sent to UN member-states and seen by AFP on Tuesday. The September 23 summit at the United Nations is billed as the first major stock-taking gathering of world leaders on climate change since the Paris agreement was reached in 2015. The event follows a string of reports containing dire predictions about the future of the planet as carbon dioxide emissions continue to rise, pushing targets set out under the Paris accord further out of reach. President Donald Trumps 2017 decision to pull the United States out of the Paris accord will also cast a cloud over the summit that will be held on the sidelines of the General Assembly meeting in New York. In the document, Guterres asked countries to present concrete, realistic plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent over the next decade and to net zero by 2050. Setting up a selection process similar to a contest, the United Nations will convene a meeting in Abu Dhabi on June 30-July 1 to pick the most ambitious proposals to take center stage at the summit. To make the cut, countries will have to come up with plans that have a transformational impact that breaks new ground or aims at dramatically scaling up an existing initiative. The chosen proposals will be innovative, inclusive and have the ability to be replicated across sectors or regions, said the document sent to member-states last week. Countries chosen to be in the summit spotlight will earn recognition as leaders on climate change and arguably a bigger say in crafting the worlds response to what the United Nations has called the defining issue of our time, UN officials say.