It’s Wednesday, July 24, and the U.N. is laying down the climate law.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres reached out to multiple heads of state over the weekend, calling for all member nations to meet carbon-neutral goals by 2050.
Guterres said he asked all leaders to come to the U.N. Climate Summit, which will take place this September in New York, “ready to announce the plans that they will set next year to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for 2030 and to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.” He added that attendees should be prepared to discuss their “long-term strategies” for meeting Paris accord goals — softer phrasing intended to be more inclusive of developing countries, like China, that may have a harder time meeting the 2030 benchmark.
Guterres is not the only one putting pressure on world leaders leading up to the summit. The U.N., the World Health Organization, the United Nations Environment Program, and Climate and Clean Air Coalition announced their “Clean Air Initiative” on Tuesday, which calls on all nations to meet established air quality standards by 2030.
Both initiatives are non-binding, meaning countries must agree to comply with the goals on an individual basis, and there are no consequences (at least for now) if they don’t. But at least the U.N. is keeping its eye on the prize and trying to use its power as a global governing body to give leaders an extra push to, you know, do something about the climate crisis.
The Smog
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