In many locations along the U.S. coastline, the rate of local sea level rise is greater than the global average due to land processes like erosion, oil and groundwater pumping, and subsidence.
With such grim facts to swallow, it is a positive sign that leaders and activists met this week at the annual New York Climate Week organized by the NGO Climate Group, COP28 Presidency and the World Health Organization.
Climate Week NYC coincides with the United Nations General Assembly currently taking place, and is supersized this year into a blitz of hundreds of events, ranging from panels to a full-day U.N. summit called by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, according to Axios.
According to the organizers, climate change kills 250,000 people each year and one in four deaths can be attributed to preventable environmental causes. The reason for the gathering is to ensure countries are aware of the dangers of climate change and are working to mitigate the threat.
To accelerate action by governments, business, finance, local authorities and civil society, and hear from "first movers and doers," Guterres is convening a Climate Ambition Summit at United Nations Headquarters in New York on Sep. 20.
In an interview with UN News, Guterres said that while countries are normally front and centre, the Summit will give a platform to the "frontliners," those that are the most committed to climate action, and can share the best practices.
"We are moving to 2.6-2.8 degreesC of global temperature rise by the end of the century," he warned, stressing the need to return to the goal of limiting the temperature increase to 1.5 degreesC above pre-industrial levels.
"It is still possible with political will - but a lot needs to be done," Guterres asserted.
In addition to this Summit, the upcoming annual UN Climate Conference (COP28) will be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Dec. 3. where attendees will work to reach an agreement on updated goals to tackle climate change. For the most part, countries are expected to pledge a commitment to reach net zero, 2030 emissions reduction targets, and a 1.5-degree warming threshold.
Even so, not enough is being done to combat climate change and this month's disasters in Libya and elsewhere should serve as a stark reminder that time is not on our side.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
