Forum confronts rising temperature data amid high global stakes

Climate activists stage a protest inside the COP29 venue to demand phase out of fossil fuels during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku on November 15, 2024. [AFP]

Even before world leaders convened in Baku, Azerbaijan, for COP29, UN Secretary General António Guterres issued a warning, describing the moment as humanity’s “final countdown” to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a threshold critical to preventing the most catastrophic impacts of climate change.

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) had confirmed an alarming reality of 2024 being on course to becoming the hottest year on record.

According to the WMO, global mean temperatures from January to September surpassed pre-industrial levels by 1.54 degrees Celsius. The intensity of the El Niño effect, which amplifies atmospheric temperatures, has contributed significantly to this spike.

For 16 months, starting in mid-2023, monthly global mean temperatures have broken records, making 2023 and 2024 the warmest in recorded history.

The WMO report states that atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations reached 420 parts per million (ppm) in 2023 — a 51 per cent marked increase from pre-industrial levels.
Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, has risen by 165 per cent, reaching 1,934 parts per billion.

This acceleration is impacting ecosystems, economies and daily lives across the globe. The repercussions extend from melting glaciers and rising sea levels to extreme heatwaves and catastrophic storms. This is placing communities and infrastructures at severe risk.

Guterres observed the need for countries to commit to reducing emissions at an unprecedented rate. “No country is spared,” he said. “In our global economy, supply chain shocks raise costs everywhere. Decimated harvests push up food prices everywhere.”

He urged COP29 attendees to pursue an annual 9 per cent reduction in global emissions to remain within the 1.5 degrees Celsius. This is a monumental challenge, given that current trajectories are not close to meeting this target.

“We must cut global emissions nine per cent every year,” Guterres stated, adding that by 2030, emissions should fall by 43 per cent relative to 2019 levels.
He also explained the need for new national climate action plans that align with this goal.

The UN called for fair and effective carbon markets, a reduction in fossil fuel consumption by 30 per cent by 2030, and a commitment to renewable energy expansion. “The clean energy revolution is here,” he said, stressing that no government or corporation could afford to ignore this shift.

The theme of COP29 is financial responsibility, especially for wealthier nations, which contribute the most to emissions but are often least affected by the immediate consequences.

Guterres drew attention to the vast disparity in emissions, citing that the world’s wealthiest emit more carbon in 90 minutes than an average person produces in a lifetime. “The rich cause the problem, the poor pay the highest price,” he observed, calling it a “story of avoidable injustice.”

He urged developed nations to double their adaptation finance to at least USD40 billion annually by 2025, noting that failure to do so would mean countless lives and livelihoods lost.

The UN boss also stressed that adaptation finance is “not charity; it’s an investment” in the resilience and future stability of the global economy.