UN chief hails Pacific’s ‘moral authority’ on climate

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday the Pacific possesses “a unique moral authority” to demand global action on climate change because its people are bearing the brunt of the problem.

Visiting Fiji as part of a South Pacific tour to highlight the dangers of global warming, Guterres said the region was on the front line of climate change. “Here in the Pacific, sea-level rise in some countries is four times greater than the global average and is an existential threat to some island states,” he said.

He said this was despite the fact that the Pacific islands contributed little to global warming and had been among the first nations to minimise their greenhouse gas emissions.

 

UN chief hails Pacifics moral authority on climate

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday the Pacific possesses a unique moral authority to demand global action on climate change because its people are bearing the brunt of the problem. Visiting Fiji as part of a South Pacific tour to highlight the dangers of global warming, Guterres said the region was on the front line of climate change. Here in the Pacific, sea-level rise in some countries is four times greater than the global average and is an existential threat to some island states, he said. He said this was despite the fact that the Pacific islands contributed little to global warming and had been among the first nations to minimise their greenhouse gas emissions.