Prioritise fossil fuel phaseout: Scientists urge COP30 President
COP30
.
Climate physicist and signatory
Bill Hare
handed over the letter in person to COP30 President Andre Correa do Lago during the mid-year climate conference in Bonn, Germany. "We strongly urge you to use your substantial global platform to champion a fast, fair, effective and full phaseout of fossil fuels. The science is clear: the burning of fossil fuels is driving
climate change
and its disastrous impacts on the lives and livelihoods of people all around the world," the letter read. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the
Paris Agreement
, which aims to limit the rise in global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, while pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius. "Yet, a decade later, we remain well short of our goals. The last 10 years were also the 10 hottest years in history. The world has now exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming in a single year for the first time on record," they said.
Citing major findings from the past decade of scientific literature, the scientists said that existing fossil fuel infrastructure alone makes the 1.5 degrees Celsius target unattainable.
The signatories, including renowned physicist Paulo Artaxo and Friederike Otto, a professor at Imperial College London, said it will be impossible to avoid severe socioeconomic impacts, which will affect humanity for centuries, without a fast, just and planned transition away from fossil fuels.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
5 minutes ago
- The Hindu
State for the stateless: on France and Palestinian statehood
France's decision to recognise Palestinian statehood, in September, reflects President Emmanuel Macron's deep frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the ongoing war on Gaza, as well as his willingness to adopt a more pro-active and constructive approach towards finding a durable solution. Of the 193 members of the UN, 147, including India, China and Russia, have already recognised the Palestinian state. But powerful western nations, with close ties to Israel, have always stopped short of granting official recognition even if professing support for a two-state solution. But this position began to shift after the Gaza war in October 2023, with more European countries taking formal steps towards its recognition. Last year, Spain, Ireland, Norway and Slovenia recognised Palestine's independence. If Mr. Macron follows through, France will be the first G-7 member nation to do so. Such a move may not have an immediate, direct impact on the peace process. That more western European countries are now ready to take irreversible measures in favour of Palestinian statehood, ignoring strong opposition from Tel Aviv and Washington, marks a clear change in sentiment towards one of the modern world's most contentious conflicts. Mr. Macron's announcement comes at a critical juncture for the Palestinians. The war has devastated the enclave with confirmed deaths reaching 60,000 in 21 months — roughly 2.5% of its total population. In the West Bank, settler violence has displaced tens of thousands of Palestinians. Israeli Ministers have openly threatened to ethnically cleanse Gaza and annex the West Bank. Images of starving and malnourished children, which came out of Gaza last week, have jolted global conscience. Even Israel's closest allies, including Britain, Canada and France, issued a rare joint statement, urging Mr. Netanyahu to 'immediately end the humanitarian catastrophe'. Under mounting pressure, Israel has announced 'tactical pauses' in its attacks. But this is far from sufficient. What Gaza urgently needs is a complete end to the bombings and shelling, and the full opening of its borders to humanitarian aid. Given that pressure is the only language Israel appears to understand, and with the Donald Trump presidency showing no willingness to apply it, Europe must do more. Efforts to end the war, which in terms of mass killings, devastation and displacement is comparable to the 1948-49 Nakba, must be accompanied by initiatives to ensure that such a catastrophe is never repeated. There should be concrete measures from the international community to pursue a durable political solution, which is the two-state solution. The first step in that direction is the recognition of Palestinian independence and statehood. France has promised to join, though belatedly, most member-countries of the UN in the statehood push. Other nations in the West must follow.
New Indian Express
28 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
France takes stand as Gaza faces starvation
Emmanuel Macron has set a pigeon among hawks by announcing his decision to formally recognise Palestine at the UN General Assembly in September. Nearly three-fourths of the UN's 193 members already recognise the state embattled and occupied by Israel. India was among the first to do so in 1988. France's move will leave the US and the UK as the only members of the Security Council's Permanent Five not to have done so. That means Palestine still cannot become a full UN member. Australia and the UK, whose foreign ministers joined their French and 27 other counterparts a week ago in calling for an end to the Gaza carnage, clarified later that they would not follow France's gesture for now. The irony is that it was France's agreement in 1916 to hand Ottoman Palestine to Britain and the British foreign secretary's action in 1917 that led to the violent waves of Zionism battering West Asia even today. Like imperial Britain then, America today wants the resourceful Zionists in its sphere of influence. So, any attempt at peace between the occupier and the occupied has remained agonisingly out of reach.
The Hindu
35 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Urgent need for 'global approach' on AI regulation: U.N. tech chief
The world urgently needs to find a global approach on regulating artificial intelligence, the United Nations' top tech chief said this week, warning that fragmentation could deepen risks and inequalities. Doreen Bogdan-Martin, head of the UN's International Telecommunications Union (ITU) agency, told AFP she hoped that AI "can actually benefit humanity". But as concerns mount over the risks posed by the fast-moving technology -- including fears of mass job losses, the spread of deepfakes and disinformation, and society's fabric fraying -- she insisted that regulation was key. "There's an urgency to try to get... the right framework in place," she said, stressing the need for "a global approach". Her comments came after U.S. President Donald Trump this week unveiled an aggressive, low-regulation strategy aimed at ensuring the United States stays ahead of China on AI. Among more than 90 proposals, Trump's plan calls for sweeping deregulation, with the administration promising to "remove red tape and onerous regulation" that could hinder private sector AI development. Asked if she had concerns about an approach that urges less, not more, regulation of AI technologies, Bogdan-Martin refrained from commenting, saying she was "still trying to digest" the US plan. Lack of AI policies or strategies "I think there are different approaches," she said. "We have the EU approach. We have the Chinese approach. Now we're seeing the U.S. approach. I think what's needed is for those approaches to dialogue," she said. At the same time, she highlighted that "85% of countries don't yet have AI policies or strategies". A consistent theme among those strategies that do exist is the focus on innovation, capacity building and infrastructure investments, Bogdan-Martin said. "But where I think the debate still needs to happen at a global level is trying to figure out how much regulation, how little regulation, is needed," she said. Bogdan-Martin, who grew up in New Jersey and has spent most of her more than three-decade career at the ITU, insisted the Geneva-based telecoms agency that sets standards for new technologies was well-placed to help facilitate much-needed dialogue on the issue. "The need for a global approach I think is critical," she said, cautioning that "fragmented approaches will not help serve and reach all". As countries and companies sprint to cement their dominance in the booming sector, there are concerns that precautions could be thrown to the wind -- and that those who lose the race or do not have the capacity to participate will be left behind. Huge gap The ITU chief hailed "mind-blowing" advances within artificial intelligence, with the potential to improve everything from education to agriculture to health care -- but insisted the benefits must be shared. Without a concerted effort, there is a risk that AI will end up standing for "advancing inequalities", she warned, cautioning against deepening an already dire digital divide worldwide. "We have 2.6 billion people that have no access to the internet, which means they have no access to artificial intelligence", Bogdan-Martin pointed out. "We have to tackle those divides if we're actually going to have something that is beneficial to all of humanity." Bogdan-Martin, the first woman to serve as ITU secretary-general in the organisation's nearly 160-year history, also stressed the need to get more women into the digital space. "We have a huge gap," she said. "We definitely don't have enough women... in artificial intelligence." The 58-year-old mother of four said it was "a big honour" to be the first woman in her position, to be "breaking the glass ceiling (and) paving the path for future generations". But she acknowledged there was a lot of pressure, "not just to achieve, but to almost overachieve". Bogdan-Martin, who is being backed by the Trump administration to stand for re-election when her four-year mandate ends next year, said she was eager to stay on for a second term. "There is a lot to do."
