UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivered a stark warning about the ongoing climate crisis, emphasizing that humanity is both the primary cause and the potential solution. In a major speech at the American Museum of Natural History in New York for World Environment Day, Guterres drew a powerful analogy, comparing human impact on the planet to the meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs.
“Like the meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs, we’re having an outsized impact. In the case of climate, we are not the dinosaurs. We are the meteor. We are not only in danger. We are the danger. But we are also the solution,” Guterres stated.
He stressed the urgent need for immediate and decisive action to combat climate change, urging a 9% annual reduction in global emissions to maintain the 1.5-degree global warming limit. “We are playing Russian roulette with our planet. We need an exit ramp off the highway to climate hell. And the truth is we have control of the wheel,” he warned.
Guterres underscored that the 1.5-degree limit is a critical physical boundary, not just a target, necessitating a robust global response. He highlighted that the next 18 months are crucial for setting emission reduction targets for 2030 and 2035.
The UN chief also pointed out the disproportionate impact of climate change on poor communities, which contribute the least to the crisis but suffer the most. “The richest 1% emit as much as two-thirds of humanity,” he noted, criticizing the fossil fuel industry for profiting from taxpayer-funded subsidies while exacerbating climate chaos.
Guterres called for protecting natural carbon sinks like forests and oceans, utilizing existing technologies to slash emissions, and ensuring all countries fulfill their climate commitments. He emphasized the necessity of climate financing, not as a favor, but as essential for a livable future.
“Every country must deliver and play their rightful part. We need cooperation, not finger-pointing,” he said, condemning the complacency of those responsible for the crisis who “sit in their air-conditioned bubbles” while the most vulnerable struggle.
Guterres also advocated for taxing the profits of fossil fuel companies to fund new climate initiatives. “Fossil fuels are not only poisoning our planet – they’re toxic for the branding process of companies,” he remarked.
In closing, Guterres urged global leaders to act decisively and cooperatively, emphasizing that no country can solve the climate crisis alone. “Don’t lose courage. Don’t lose hope. It’s we the people versus the polluters and the profiteers,” he declared. “It’s time for leaders to decide whose side they’re on. Tomorrow is too late. Now is the time to mobilize, now is the time to act, now is the time to deliver.”–News Desk