Guterres addresses sustainability summit in UK

United Nations chief António Guterres has warned that there is "no kind way" to describe the future of the planet. "The 1.5-degree (Celsius) goal is on life support. It is in intensive care," Guterres said in his remarks at the Economist Sustainability Summit in London.

In a pre-recorded message to the summit on the topic of "Keeping 1.5 Alive", Guterres said that although some progress was made at COP 26, the problem wasn't solved.

"In fact, the problem is getting worse", he said.

Guterres said the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has reported that half of the world's population is already living in the danger zone.

Reiterating calls for energy adaptation, Guterres said that the Glasgow commitment to doubling adaptation funding by 2025 is not enough.

In order to keep the 1.5-degree goal alive, Guterres said the world needs to accelerate the phase-out of coal and fossil fuels, implement a sustainable energy transition, and protect "the most vulnerable".

"That's how we will move the 1.5-degree goal from life support to the recovery room," he said.

Image: AP