World leaders gather in New York on Monday for a UN climate change summit with little precedent. It comes amid a conspicuous shift in public sentiment that was plain to see on Friday, when vast numbers of students were joined by adults in dozens of countries worldwide in a global climate strike.
The protesters make a serious point: despite more than 30 years of international efforts to stem the greenhouse gases driving global warming, emissions have accelerated. Signs of a political response have begun to emerge in the form of climate emergency declarations and targets to cut the net emission of greenhouse gases to zero. Yet leaders are only beginning to understand the sweeping, economy-wide policies required to meet these bolder goals. They need to grasp the enormity of the climate change challenge — and put it at the centre of all policymaking.
Decades have passed since countries first began to acknowledge the need for action. At least 147 have policies to support renewable energy. More than 50 have electric car incentives. More than 40 have a price on carbon emissions.