UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres will on Wednesday gather for a meeting heads of state and business leaders he has identified as taking strong action on climate change. The gathering aims to build momentum ahead of the COP28 climate summit.
Missing from the list of 34 speakers representing countries at Guterres' Climate Ambition Summit are the world's biggest emitters, China and the US, as well as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the host of the COP28 gathering in December.
The summit will feature speeches from leaders who are responding to his call to “accelerate” global climate action, including South Africa, Brazil, Canada, the EU, Pakistan and Tuvalu.
Guterres said one of the aims was to spur action from countries and companies whose climate plans were not in line with the global climate target.
Non-member states and international financial institutions that will get speaking slots include Allianz, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), London and California.
US special envoy on climate change John Kerry will attend the summit, but will not deliver a speech, a spokesperson said.
UN chief puts spotlight on 'movers', excludes US, China at climate summit
UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres will on Wednesday gather for a meeting heads of state and business leaders he has identified as taking strong action on climate change. The gathering aims to build momentum ahead of the COP28 climate summit.
Missing from the list of 34 speakers representing countries at Guterres' Climate Ambition Summit are the world's biggest emitters, China and the US, as well as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the host of the COP28 gathering in December.
The summit will feature speeches from leaders who are responding to his call to “accelerate” global climate action, including South Africa, Brazil, Canada, the EU, Pakistan and Tuvalu.
Guterres said one of the aims was to spur action from countries and companies whose climate plans were not in line with the global climate target.
Non-member states and international financial institutions that will get speaking slots include Allianz, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), London and California.
US special envoy on climate change John Kerry will attend the summit, but will not deliver a speech, a spokesperson said.
The secretary-general's office has kept a close hold on the list of invited speakers.
Guterres' climate adviser Selwin Hart said this week that the purpose of the summit was not to “embarrass” countries or companies that did not make the cut, but to inspire more action from others.
The criteria for a leader to be selected to speak include:
New climate funding pledges or adaptation plans are also among the criteria for countries to participate.
For businesses, cities and financial institutions, the UN requires them to represent transition plans aligned with UN integrity recommendations, emission reduction targets for 2025 that include indirect emissions and plans to phase out fossil fuels that do not rely on carbon offsetting.
Guterres has been blunt in his public assessment of countries' climate actions and whether they will deliver on the Paris Agreement goal to limit the rise in global temperature to 1.5°C.
“I'm not sure all leaders are feeling the heat. Actions are falling abysmally short,” he said in his opening remarks at the UN General Assembly.
A UN report released earlier this month said existing national pledges to cut emissions were insufficient to keep temperatures within the 1.5ºC threshold. More than 20 gigatonnes of further CO2 reductions were needed this decade — and global net zero by 2050 — to meet the goals.
China's mission to the UN and the UAE did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Reuters
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