‘Leadership gap’ undermining global efforts to curb climate change, UN chief says
Global News
"Leaders can still make this a turning point to a greener future instead of a tipping point to climate catastrophe," the United Nations Secretary-General said.
The head of the United Nations says a “leadership gap” is undermining the world’s efforts to curb global warming, days before presidents and prime ministers from around the globe gather for a climate summit in Glasgow.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters Tuesday that time is running out to cut greenhouse gas emissions and meet the goals of the 2015 Paris accord to avert global warming that he said could become “an existential threat to humanity.”
“The clock is ticking,” he said in New York at the presentation of a U.N. report highlighting the difference between what scientists say is needed and what countries are doing to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas being pumped into the atmosphere.
“The emissions gap is the result of a leadership gap,” Guterres said. “But leaders can still make this a turning point to a greener future instead of a tipping point to climate catastrophe. ”
The new report by the U.N. Environment Programme found fresh pledges by governments to cut emissions are raising hopes but aren’t strict enough to keep global warming from exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.
It concluded that recent announcements by dozens of countries to aim for “net-zero” emissions by 2050 could, if fully implemented, limit a global temperature rise to 2.2 degrees Celsius. That’s closer but still above the less stringent target agreed upon in the Paris climate accord of capping global warming at 2 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times.
The European Union, the United States and dozens of other countries have set net-zero emissions targets. However, the UNEP report said the net-zero goals that many governments announced ahead of a U.N. climate summit in Glasgow next week remain vague, with much of the heavy lifting on emissions cuts pushed beyond 2030.
Australia became the latest country to announce a net zero target on Tuesday, but experts swiftly pointed out that it doesn’t stack up.
Members of Parliament are back in the House of Commons today, where the government is expected to face tough questions about new auditor general reports and the war in Iran.
Two Air Canada pilots are dead after their flight originating from Montreal collided with a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia Airport Sunday night.
With more rain in the forecast, crews continue to deal with a mudslide earlier this week that covered a road in Coquitlam in debris, posing risk to Metro Vancouver's water supply.
A former BC Ferries CEO says the Queen of the North sinking remains ‘disturbing’ 20 years later. The ferry struck an island in Wright Sound on March 22, 2006. Two people died.
The 2026 Kraft Hockeyville top two contestants have been named. The winner receives $250,000 for ice rink upgrades, and the runner-up will receive a prize worth about $100,000.
The Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer scrutinizes federal spending decisions and helps to cost out campaign proposals during elections.
Man’s best friend is proving to be a true lifeline. All across Saskatchewan, service dogs are providing essential, life-changing support every day.
Two days after the first day of spring, parts of Atlantic Canada and Quebec will see another blast of winter with Environment Canada forecasting several centimetres of snow.
UNESCO recognized several Maritime historical groups including the executive director of the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre for their work on the Black Loyalist archive.
Aid shipments are beginning to arrive in Cuba and a Russian oil delivery is expected this month, but fuel shortages remain critical.
Tensions flared as CAQ leadership rivals clashed over Quebec’s “third link” project in the first debate to replace Premier François Legault.
Toronto police have charged a 60-year-old man with second-degree murder in connection with the death of Xian Wei Shao, whose remains were discovered in a north end home last week.
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne says the government has found ways to cut spending by $60 billion but cautions that published spending cuts require important context.