Bold action needed to stop ‘global boiling’
There is no doubt that the world is headed for grave trouble. Climate change is no longer some academic fixation or speculation, but a tremendous evil force that is increasingly building up. Interestingly, July this year, as scientists have confirmed, is going to be the hottest month recorded in history. And an alarmed United Nations is warning of the Earth moving into “an era of global boiling”. These scary words have been spoken by none other by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. While all will suffer the consequences, squarely to blame for the crisis are the rich developed nations of the West and China. It is no secret that wealthy corporations are recklessly extracting fossil fuels after centuries of dirty industrialisation in Europe and North America, significantly contributing to global climate change. Tens of millions of people have been affected by extremely high temperatures in Europe, Asia and North America. Calling for bold action to cut planet-heating emissions, the UN boss ominously stated: “Climate change is here. It is terrifying. And it is just the beginning. The era of global warming has ended; the era of global boiling has arrived.” The World Meteorological Organisation says July could become the hottest month since the 1940s. Ironically, the largest polluters are those suffering the least the dangers of climate change. This is the most serious threat to life on our planet, hence the need to cut down on mere talk and intensify actions to roll back this threat. At the core of the solution is the reduction of greenhouse emissions and the wealthy countries are the major culprits. There are key meetings coming up that should provide an opportunity to move the agenda forward. One is the Africa Climate Week (ACW) 2023 in September in Nairobi and the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework on Climate Change (COP28) in Dubai in November. The key actions are adaptation and resilience, promoting renewable energy and sustainable development and financing for climate action. The rich countries must pay climate reparations for their high greenhouse gas emissions. Despite various efforts, compensation has not been forthcoming. This should be paid to developing countries to enable the transition from fossil fuels.