United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the world is hurtling toward ecological destruction, sounding a bleak opening tone to the annual UN General Assembly meeting in New York.
Speaking a day after convening world leaders to ratchet up climate commitments, Guterres said Tuesday that the “climate alarm bells” are “ringing at fever pitch.” Calling current global efforts insufficient, he forecast a “hellscape of temperature rises” if emissions aren’t cut more than currently planned.
“We are weeks away from the UN Climate Conference in Glasgow, but seemingly light-years away from reaching our targets,” Guterres told world leaders at the hybrid event where leaders including U.S. President Joe Biden and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro are speaking in person but others will appear by video. “We must get serious. And we must act fast.”
