BRAZILIAN President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told world leaders today, the planet is facing an “unprecedented climate emergency” while addressing the G20 Summit in India.

“The lack of commitment to the environment has led us to an unprecedented climate emergency,” said Lula at the two-day meeting in New Delhi. “Droughts, floods, storms and fires are becoming more frequent.”

The G20 leaders are meeting this weekend during what might be the hottest year in human history, but there’s little hope that the divided group can reach a consensus on an ambitious plan of action to tackle the crisis.

Any failure to do so could lower expectations ahead of crucial COP28 climate talks that begin in November in the United Arab Emirates. 

In July, G20 energy ministers failed to even mention coal in their final statement, let alone agree on a roadmap for phasing it down, and there was no progress on the renewables goal.

The G20 countries are responsible for 85% of the world’s GDP and an equivalent amount of global warming emissions, making their actions in the forum essential for significant progress. – AFP, September 9, 2023