by Stéphane ORJOLLET Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) – Half a degree Celsius may not seem like much, but climate experts say a world that has warmed 1.5 degrees Celsius above 19th-century levels compared to 2C could be the difference between life and death. A 2C Earth would see the number of people facing extreme heat waves more than double. A quarter of a billion more people would face water shortages. The Arctic Ocean will […]
Tag: 2015 Paris agreement
COP26 ‘won’t be easy’, UN climate chief admits
by Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS Agence France-Presse MILAN, Italy (AFP) – The forthcoming COP26 summit — which could determine the viability of the Paris Agreement — will “not be easy” but an outcome matching the urgency of the crisis is an “absolute necessity”, the UN’s climate chief said Wednesday. As the world faces stronger and more frequent droughts, wildfires, flooding and storm surges made worse as the planet warms, the COP26 summit in Glasgow is being billed […]
World leaders will hold closed-door climate meet at UN
UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) – UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will host a closed-door meeting of world leaders Monday on the sidelines of the General Assembly in New York to boost climate commitments. The roundtable comes less than six weeks before a major United Nations climate meeting, COP26, in Glasgow, aimed at ensuring the world meets its goal of holding century-end warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. “UNGA is the […]
World urged to move on ‘climate emergency’ after pandemic
by Jitendra JOSHI and Patrick GALEY in Paris Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The United Nations on Saturday urged leaders to declare a global climate emergency and shape greener growth after the coronavirus pandemic, as nations took gloomy stock five years since the landmark Paris Agreement. Fast-growing China, the world’s biggest emitter, outlined limited new ambitions in green energy at a virtual “Climate Ambition Summit” addressed by more than 70 leaders. In the […]
2020 one of three hottest years ever recorded: UN
by Robin MILLARD Agence France-Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — This year is on course to be one of the three warmest ever recorded, the United Nations said Wednesday, as the UN chief warned the world was on the brink of “climate catastrophe”. The past six years, 2015 to 2020, are set to make up all six of the hottest years since modern records began in 1850, the UN’s World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said in its provisional […]
Record heat forecast for coming years
by Patrick GALEY Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — The coming five years are anticipated to be warmest period on record, Britain’s Met Office said Thursday, warning of an outside chance of Earth breaching the Paris deal 1.5C temperature rise cap before 2024. In a regular “decadal forecast” looking at predicted near-term climate trends, it said that each year between 2020-2024 is set to be 1.06-1.62C hotter than historical averages. The Met Office forecast it “likely” […]
Kerry arrives in Lima for APEC as U.S. undergoes transition
LIMA, Peru (Reuters) — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Lima Thursday (November 17) for the 2016 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) at a time when the role of the United States on issues as far-ranging as trade and climate change remains unclear in the wake of Donald Trump’s electoral victory. Upon arriving in Lima, Kerry and delegations from the United States met with his peers from J apan, Fumio Kishida, and Philippines, Perfecto […]





