United Nations Secretary-Generalwarned of a crisis of an unimaginable scale caused by greenhouse gases and rising sea levels.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has issued his latest climate SOS, calling on countries to Save Our Seas as he warned of a crisis of an unimaginable scale caused by greenhouse gases and rising sea levels.
Speaking at a gathering of Pacific Island regional leaders this morning in Tonga’s capital Nuku’alofa, he warned there was no lifeboat to take us back to safety.
Nuku’alofa is hosting more than 1,000 international delegates for the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting until August 30
Guterres, who last attended the Leaders Meeting in 2019, warned that with about 90 percent of people living within 5km of the coast, and an average elevation of just one to 1-2 meters above sea level, the Pacific islands are uniquely exposed.
He is also expected to visit Samoa while he is in the Pacific.
Among the Pacific Islands’ most ambitious climate change mitigation efforts is the Pacific Resilience Facility.
The Climate Action Team report found that sea levels in Nuku’alofa had risen 21 centimeters between 1990 and 2020, more than twice the global average of 10 centimeters
The UN General Assembly is set to hold a special session to discuss the existential threat posed by rising sea levels on September 25.
