AFP UK

The G20 major economies committed on Sunday to the key goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, but some disappointed leaders warned more was needed to make a success of UN climate talks beginning in Glasgow.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the host of the COP26 summit that opened on Sunday, said the pledge from world leaders after two days of talks in Rome was “not enough”, and warned of the dire consequences for the planet.

“If Glasgow fails, the whole thing fails,” he told reporters, saying the G20 commitments were “drops in a rapidly warming ocean”.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he left Rome “with my hopes unfulfilled — but at least they are not buried”.

The G20 nations between them emit nearly 80 percent of carbon emissions, and a firm commitment on action was viewed as vital for the success of the UN’s COP26.

US President Joe Biden said the summit made “tangible” progress on many issues but said he found it “disappointing” that Russia and China, whose leaders attended only via videolink, did not offer stronger climate pledges.

He vowed to “continue to focus on what China is not doing, what Russia is not doing, and what Saudi Arabia is not doing.”

– Meaningful actions –

In a final communique, the G20 reaffirmed its support for the goals in the landmark 2015 Paris climate accords, to keep “the global average temperature increase well below 2 degrees and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels”.

They said this would require “meaningful and effective actions and commitment by all countries, taking into account different approaches”, while they also promised measures against coal use.

But experts say meeting the 1.5 degree target means slashing global emissions nearly in half by 2030 and to “net-zero” by 2050 — and the G20 set no firm date, speaking only of reaching the goal of net zero “by or around mid century”.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, who hosted the G20 talks, said he was “proud of these results, but we must remember that it’s only the start”.

Eyes now turn to Glasgow, where more than 120 heads of state and government, including Biden, India’s Narendra Modi and Australia’s Scott Morrison, were heading from Rome. 

– Lacking ambition –

The G20 leaders did agree to end funding for new unabated coal plants abroad — those whose emissions have not gone through any filtering process — by the end of 2021.

But environmental campaign group Greenpeace slammed the final statement as “weak, lacking both ambition and vision”, saying G20 leaders “failed to meet the moment”.

“If the G20 was a dress rehearsal for COP26, then world leaders fluffed their lines,” said Executive Director Jennifer Morgan.

Friederike Roder, senior director at anti-poverty group Global Citizen, told AFP the summit had produced “half-measures rather than concrete actions”.

European leaders pointed out that given the fundamental divisions among the world’s most advanced nations, a joint commitment to what was the most ambitious Paris goal was a step forward.

“I hear all the very alarmed talk on these subjects. I’m myself worried and we are fully mobilised,” said French President Emmanuel Macron.

“But I would like us to take a step back and look at the situation where we were four years ago”, when former US President Donald Trump announced he was pulling out of the treaty.

Draghi said that the needle had moved markedly even in the past few days, including by China — by far the world’s biggest carbon polluter.

Beijing plans to make its economy carbon neutral before 2060, but has resisted pressure to offer nearer-term goals. 

– ‘Dream big’ –

Earlier on Sunday, Draghi, Britain’s Prince Charles and Pope Francis had all called on leaders to think big.

Calling climate change “the defining challenge of our times”, Draghi warned: “Either we act now… or we delay acting, pay a much higher price later, and risk failing.”

Pope Francis, who is outspoken on the issue and received several G20 leaders at the Vatican this weekend, said: “This is a moment to dream big, to rethink our priorities… The time to act, and to act together, is now!”

The G20 major economies committed on Sunday to the key goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, but disappointed leaders warned more was needed to make a success of UN climate talks beginning in Glasgow.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the host of the COP26 summit that opened on Sunday, said the pledge from world leaders after two days of talks in Rome was “not enough”, and warned of the dire consequences for the planet.

“If Glasgow fails, the whole thing fails,” he told reporters, saying the  G20 commitments were “drops in a rapidly warming ocean”.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres also expressed disappointment at the outcome of the G20 summit, saying he left Rome “with my hopes unfulfilled — but at least they are not buried”.

The G20 nations between them emit nearly 80 percent of carbon emissions, and a firm commitment on action was viewed as vital for the success of the UN’s COP26.

In a final communique, the G20 reaffirmed its support for the goals in the landmark 2015 Paris climate accords, to keep “the global average temperature increase well below 2 degrees and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels”.

They said this would require “meaningful and effective actions and commitment by all countries, taking into account different approaches”, while they also promised action on coal.

But experts say meeting the 1.5 degree target means slashing global emissions nearly in half by 2030 and to “net-zero” by 2050 — and the G20 set no firm date, speaking only of reaching the goal of net zero “by or around mid century”.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, who hosted the G20 talks, said he was “proud of these results, but we must remember that it’s only the start”.

Eyes now turn to Glasgow, where more than 120 heads of state and government, including US President Joe Biden, India’s Narendra Modi and Australia’s Scott Morrison, were heading from Rome. 

– Lacking ambition –

The G20 leaders did agree to end funding for new unabated coal plants abroad — those whose emissions have not gone through any filtering process — by the end of 2021.

But environmental campaign group Greenpeace slammed the final statement as “weak, lacking both ambition and vision”, saying G20 leaders “failed to meet the moment”.

“If the G20 was a dress rehearsal for COP26, then world leaders fluffed their lines,” said Executive Director Jennifer Morgan.

Friederike Roder, senior director at anti-poverty group Global Citizen, told AFP the summit had produced “half-measures rather than concrete actions”.

European leaders pointed out that given the fundamental divisions among the world’s most advanced nations, a joint commitment to what was the most ambitious Paris goal was a step forward.

“I hear all the very alarmed talk on these subjects. I’m myself worried and we are fully mobilised,” said French President Emmanuel Macron.

“But I would like us to take a step back and look at the situation where we were four years ago”, when former US President Donald Trump announced he was pulling out of the treaty.

Draghi said that the needle had moved markedly even in the past few days, including by China — by far the world’s biggest carbon polluter.

Beijing plans to make its economy carbon neutral before 2060, but has resisted pressure to offer nearer-term goals. 

India, meanwhile, argues that if net-zero by 2050 is the global goal, then rich countries should be carbon neutral 10 years earlier to allow poorer, emerging nations a larger carbon allowance and more time to develop.    

– ‘Dream big’ –

Earlier on Sunday, Draghi, Britain’s Prince Charles and Pope Francis had all called on G20 leaders — and by extension, the wider group of world leaders meeting in Glasgow — to think big.

Calling climate change “the defining challenge of our times”, Draghi warned: “Either we act now… or we delay acting, pay a much higher price later, and risk failing.”

Pope Francis, who is outspoken on the issue and received several G20 leaders at the Vatican this weekend, said: “This is a moment to dream big, to rethink our priorities… The time to act, and to act together, is now!”

One car was themed ‘climate reality,’ another ‘transforming society’ and a third ‘stop talking and start doing’ — welcome to the Glasgow-bound Rail to the COP.

With more than 400 young climate warriors on board, many in their mid-to-late teens, the 10-hour trip from Amsterdam with changeovers in Brussels and London was shot through with camaraderie, determination and anger.

One thing these young activists did not bring on board was the illusion that the 13-day UN summit starting Sunday would by itself beat back what they called the existential threat of global warming. 

“Politicians won’t achieve the Paris Agreement goals, they won’t keep the temperature under 1.5 degrees Celsius,” said Johnny Dabrowski, an 18-year old high school senior from Warsaw, referring to the cornerstone target in the 2015 treaty signed by nearly every country on the planet.

But rather than simply joining the Fridays for Future student strikes launched by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, Dabrowski has put climate action at the centre of plans for his own future.

He has enrolled to become an environmental engineer to compensate for the failure of the world’s major economies to slash greenhouse gases. 

“We have to take carbon out of the atmosphere, it’s simply a fact,” he said with a poise beyond his years.

Elin Wilhelmsson has already dedicated her career to the environment. 

Describing herself a Nature buff from the time she could walk, the 24-year-old is today a waste management engineer in the Swedish city of Aneby.

“I want what I do professionally to matter,” she said, peering over the edge of a snug-fitting face mask.

– ‘Panicky’ –

Wilhelmsson was leading a small delegation of Swedish scouts, some with jackets adorned with merit badges and all wearing the signature striped scarf.

She has a coveted “observer” status at the UN negotiations and she said she would play a watchdog role as best she can.

The Rail to the COP journey, spearheaded by the non-profit Youth for Sustainable Travel, was also meant to send a message — highlighting the low-carbon virtues of train travel.

At the station in Brussels, Eurostar Director General Jacques Dumas said that, on average, taking the train emits ten times less CO2 than flying.

Vinne Luyt, a 22-year old volunteer with Oxfam and a student in international relations from Ghent, Belgium, wanted to go to the COP26 talks in  Glasgow in support of people from the Global South who could not attend for lack of a vaccine.

“A lot of young people would have come,” said Luyt, who had become friends online with three activists in Indonesia, India and Colombia. 

“They are getting panicky about the impact of climate change on their daily lives,” he said.

Just over one degree of warming compared to preindustrial levels has been enough to unleash a deadly cascade of storms, wildfires and flooding, with far worse on the horizon, scientists say.

The more than 20 cars on the climate express were also crawling with journalists, including those from a new generation of news media run by young people for young people.

-It’s all about networking –

Lucas Wicky and Florian Thomas, both in their early 20s, recorded testimonials of activists for Brut, a video-only platform that lives on, and through, social media.

“We do storytelling for young people,” explained Thomas.

Some videos posted by Brut, which has editions in half-a-dozen countries, have scored more than 10 million views.

About half-way on the leg from London to Glasgow, the voice of a crew member from Avanti West Coast Trains pierced the bustle of animated conversation.

“My name is Fatin Abdalla, and I am so excited to be on this train,” she said over the speakers.

Abdalla, originally from Sudan, it turned out, had gone to landmark Paris climate talks in 2018 as a youth delegate for an NGO, and the experience left a huge impression.

While working in Avanti’s sustainability department, she is completing a PhD in mechanical engineering to develop ways to store heat generated by solar panels that can be used in developing countries — like her own — where most people don’t have electricity.

For many on board, the trip to Paris was more to meet other young activists than diving into the details of the highly technical UN talk.

“It’s all about networking,” said one young woman to a new-found friend.

“Yes I’ve had so many good conversations,” the other agreed.    

Global COP26 climate negotiations are the “last, best hope” to keep the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C alive, said summit president Alok Sharma as he opened the meeting on Sunday.

The Glasgow gathering, which runs to November 12, comes as an accelerating onslaught of extreme weather events across the world underscores the devastating impacts of climate change from 150 years of burning fossil fuels. 

“We know that our shared planet is changing for the worse,” Sharma said at the opening ceremony, as protesters gathered in the Scottish city to pile pressure on governments.

Experts warn that only transformative action in the next 10 years will help stave off far more cataclysmic impacts.

And the warming of the planet did not pause for the Covid-19 pandemic, which caused the UN meeting to be delayed by a year. 

The last year alone has seen a once-in-a-thousand-years heatwave and scorching wildfires in North America, extreme rainfall and flooding in Asia, Africa, the US and Europe and severe drought in Madagascar, which Sharma said has been referred to as the “first climate-induced famine”. 

In a stark reminder of what is at stake, the World Meteorological Organization said Sunday the years from 2015 to 2021 were on track to be the seven hottest on record.

– ‘Precious planet’ –

COP26 inherits its central goal from the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement, which saw countries agree to cap global warming at “well below” 2C above pre-industrial levels, and 1.5C if possible.

That deal left many crucial details to be worked out, while emissions reductions remain woefully insufficient to avert global warming. 

In August a bombshell “code red” report from the world’s top climate science body warned that Earth’s average temperature will hit the 1.5C threshold around 2030, a decade earlier than projected only three years ago.

And last week a UN report said even the latest, most ambitious carbon-cutting commitments would still lead to “catastrophic” warming of 2.7C. 

COP26 now marks the “last, best hope to keep 1.5C in reach”, Sharma said.

“If we act now and we act together we can protect our precious planet,” he said.

Activists have mobilised in Glasgow to urge the delegates on, with Extinction Rebellion campaigners kicking off the proceedings on Saturday in a march of protesters in white face paint and flamboyant robes.

Greta Thunberg also arrived in the Scottish city late Saturday on a train that was mobbed by waiting journalists.

But others hoping to arrive in eco-friendly style were thwarted by severe rail delays.

– ‘Investing in extinction’ –

Much of the world’s hopes for wrestling down emissions rest on the G20 richer nations — whose leaders met in Rome at the weekend and whose economies account for about 80 percent of carbon pollution.

They committed to the key goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C and pledged to bring a halt to international funding for coal plants without emissions capture facilities. 

They also pledged to reach a target of net zero carbon emissions “by or around mid-century”, falling short of setting a clear 2050 date, as campaigners and summit host Italy were hoping for.

The world’s focus on decarbonisation has sharpened in the face of increasingly dire warnings from scientists, central banks and security services about the threat posed by climate change, as well as global youth protests.

But governments under pressure to reboot their Covid-lashed economies continue to subsidise fossil fuels, even as they tout renewables.

UN climate chief Patricia Espinosa told the Glasgow opening ceremony that nations must turn away from business as usual or accept that “we are investing in our own extinction”.

More than 120 heads of state and government will make the trip to Glasgow for the UN meeting, including US President Joe Biden, France’s Emmanuel Macron, India’s Narendra Modi and Australia’s Scott Morrison.

But President Xi Jinping of China, the world’s largest emitter, has not left his country during the pandemic and will not be travelling to Glasgow. 

Vladimir Putin of Russia, another major polluter, will also be a no-show.

Sharma said more than 21,000 representatives from governments were registered, as well as nearly 14,000 observers and 4,000 media representatives. 

With poorer nations least responsible for greenhouse gas emissions hit hardest by its impacts, inequality overshadows the COP26 negotiations. 

The failure of rich countries to cough up $100 billion a year starting in 2020 to help developing nations lower emissions and adapt — a pledge first made in 2009 — will complicate the already fraught talks.

a shared badOne car was themed ‘climate reality,’ another ‘transforming society’ and a third ‘stop talking and start doing’ — welcome to the Glasgow-bound Rail to the COP.

With more than 400 young climate warriors on board, many in their mid-to-late teens, the 10-hour trip from Amsterdam with changeovers in Brussels and London was shot through with camaraderie, determination and anger.

One thing these young activists did not bring on board was the illusion that the 13-day UN summit starting Sunday would by itself beat back what they called the existential threat of global warming. 

“Politicians won’t achieve the Paris Agreement goals, they won’t keep the temperature under 1.5 degrees Celsius,” said Johnny Dabrowski, an 18-year old high school senior from Warsaw, referring to the cornerstone target in the 2015 treaty signed by nearly every country on the planet.

But rather than simply joining the Fridays for Future student strikes launched by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, Dabrowski has put climate action at the centre of plans for his own future.

He has enrolled to become an environmental engineer to compensate for the failure of the world’s major economies to slash greenhouse gases. 

“We have to take carbon out of the atmosphere, it’s simply a fact,” he said with a poise beyond his years.

Elin Wilhelmsson has already dedicated her career to the environment. 

Describing herself a Nature buff from the time she could walk, the 24-year-old is today a waste management engineer in the Swedish city of Aneby.

“I want what I do professionally to matter,” she said, peering over the edge of a snug-fitting face mask.

– ‘Panicky’ –

Wilhelmsson was leading a small delegation of Swedish scouts, some with jackets adorned with merit badges and all wearing the signature striped scarf.

She has a coveted “observer” status at the UN negotiations and she said she would play a watchdog role as best she can.

The Rail to the COP journey, spearheaded by the non-profit Youth for Sustainable Travel, was also meant to send a message — highlighting the low-carbon virtues of train travel.

At the station in Brussels, Eurostar Director General Jacques Dumas said that, on average, taking the train emits ten times less CO2 than flying.

Vinne Luyt, a 22-year old volunteer with Oxfam and a student in international relations from Ghent, Belgium, wanted to go to the COP26 talks in  Glasgow in support of people from the Global South who could not attend for lack of a vaccine.

“A lot of young people would have come,” said Luyt, who had become friends online with three activists in Indonesia, India and Colombia. 

“They are getting panicky about the impact of climate change on their daily lives,” he said.

Just over one degree of warming compared to preindustrial levels has been enough to unleash a deadly cascade of storms, wildfires and flooding, with far worse on the horizon, scientists say.

The more than 20 cars on the climate express were also crawling with journalists, including those from a new generation of news media run by young people for young people.

-It’s all about networking –

Lucas Wicky and Florian Thomas, both in their early 20s, recorded testimonials of activists for Brut, a video-only platform that lives on, and through, social media.

“We do storytelling for young people,” explained Thomas.

Some videos posted by Brut, which has editions in half-a-dozen countries, have scored more than 10 million views.

About half-way on the leg from London to Glasgow, the voice of a crew member from Avanti West Coast Trains pierced the bustle of animated conversation.

“My name is Fatin Abdalla, and I am so excited to be on this train,” she said over the speakers.

Abdalla, originally from Sudan, it turned out, had gone to landmark Paris climate talks in 2018 as a youth delegate for an NGO, and the experience left a huge impression.

While working in Avanti’s sustainability department, she is completing a PhD in mechanical engineering to develop ways to store heat generated by solar panels that can be used in developing countries — like her own — where most people don’t have electricity.

For many on board, the trip to Paris was more to meet other young activists than diving into the details of the highly technical UN talk.

“It’s all about networking,” said one young woman to a new-found friend.

“Yes I’ve had so many good conversations,” the other agreed.    

G20 leaders on Sunday committed to the key goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, but campaigners slammed a “lack of ambition” as make-or-break UN climate talks opened in Glasgow.

Following a two-day meeting in Rome, the Group of 20 major economies agreed that keeping that goal — which had initially been raised in the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement — would require “meaningful and effective actions”, according to the final summit statement.

The leaders, whose nations between them emit nearly 80 percent of carbon emissions, also promised action on coal, but failed to set a clear target on another key goal, to reach “net zero” emissions.

“We’re proud of these results but we must remember that it’s only the start,” said Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, host of the talks.

Earlier, the COP26 climate talks opened in Scotland with a warning by summit president Alok Sharma that they were the “last, best hope” to keep the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

As an accelerating onslaught of extreme weather events underscores the devastating impacts of burning fossil fuels, he said: “If we act now and we act together we can protect our precious planet.”

– Keep 1.5 within reach –

In the statement, G20 leaders reaffirmed their support for the Paris agreement goals of keeping “the global average temperature increase well below 2 degrees and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels”.

They added that “keeping 1.5 degrees within reach will require meaningful and effective actions and commitment by all countries, taking into account different approaches”, through the development of national plans that “align long-term ambition with short- and medium-term goals”.

But experts say meeting the 1.5 degree target means slashing global emissions nearly in half by 2030 and to “net-zero” by 2050 — and the G20 set no firm date, speaking only of reaching the goal of net zero “by or around mid century”.

The leaders did agree to end funding for new unabated coal plants abroad — those whose emissions have not gone through any filtering process — by the end of 2021.

– Lacking ambition –

Environmental campaign group Greenpeace slammed the final statement as “weak, lacking both ambition and vision”, saying G20 leaders “failed to meet the moment”.

“If the G20 was a dress rehearsal for COP26, then world leaders fluffed their lines,” said Executive Director Jennifer Morgan.

Friederike Roder, senior director at anti-poverty group Global Citizen, told AFP the summit had produced “half-measures rather than concrete actions”.

However, French President Emmanuel Macron had earlier said it was too early to write off the success of the talks in Glasgow.

More than 120 heads of state and government, including US President Joe Biden, India’s Narendra Modi and Australia’s Scott Morrison, are heading to the Scottish city.

“Let’s not forget that in Paris, in 2015, nothing was decided in advance,” Macron told the weekly Journal du Dimanche.

China — by far the world’s biggest carbon polluter — plans to make its economy carbon neutral before 2060, but has resisted pressure to offer nearer-term goals. 

India, meanwhile, argues that if net-zero by 2050 is the global goal, then rich countries should be carbon neutral ten years earlier to allow poorer, emerging nations a larger carbon allowance and more time to develop.    

– ‘Dream big’ –

Earlier Sunday, Draghi, Prince Charles and Pope Francis had all called on G20 leaders — and by extension, the wider group of world leaders meeting in Glasgow — to think big.

Calling climate change “the defining challenge of our times”, Draghi warned: “Either we act now… or we delay acting, pay a much higher price later, and risk failing.”

Prince Charles, a committed environmentalist and summit guest, had also reminded leaders of their “overwhelming responsibility” to keep climate change in check.

Pope Francis, who is outspoken on the issue and received several G20 leaders at the Vatican this weekend, said: “This is a moment to dream big, to rethink our priorities… The time to act, and to act together, is now!”

The years from 2015 to 2021 are on track to be the seven hottest on record, the World Meteorological Organization said on Sunday, warning that the planet was heading into “uncharted territory”. 

The preliminary WMO state of the climate report, launched as the UN COP26 climate conference opens, said that global warming from greenhouse gas emissions threatens “far-reaching repercussions for current and future generations”. 

Based on data for the first nine months of the year, the WMO said 2021 was likely to be between the fifth and seventh warmest year on record — despite the cooling effect of the La Nina phenomenon that lowered temperatures at the beginning of the year.

“From the ocean depths to mountain tops, from melting glaciers to relentless extreme weather events, ecosystems and communities around the globe are being devastated,” said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a statement on the report.

He added that the two-week COP26 climate conference “must be a turning point for people and planet”.

The WMO found that the average temperature for 2021 was around 1.09 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial levels.   

And the average temperature over the last 20 years (2002-2021) for the first time exceeded the symbolic threshold of 1C above the mid-19th century, when humans began burning fossil fuels on an industrial scale.

This will “focus the minds of delegates at COP26 aspiring to keep global temperature rise to within the limits agreed in Paris six years ago”, said Stephen Belcher, chief scientist at Britain’s Met Office.

The 2015 Paris Agreement saw countries agree to cap global warming at “well below” 2C above pre-industrial levels, and 1.5C if possible.

Since then the world has seen a litany of weather disasters including record-shattering wildfires across Australia and Siberia, a once-in-a-thousand-years heatwave in North America and extreme rainfall that caused massive flooding in Asia, Africa, the US and Europe.

“Extreme events are the new norm,” said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas. 

“There is mounting scientific evidence that some of these bear the footprint of human-induced climate change.”

– ‘Unimaginable’ consequences –

The state of the climate report is a snapshot of planetary health, including temperatures, extreme weather, glacier retreat and ice melt.

Ocean acidification due to the absorption of carbon dioxide by the seas was “unprecedented” in at least 26,000 years, the WMO said, adding that this will lessen the ability of the oceans to take in more C02.  

Meanwhile, sea level rise — mainly caused by the expansion of warming sea water and the melting of ice on land — was at a new high. 

The report is “shocking and deeply disturbing and yet another wake-up call to world leaders that time has run out for talk”, said Jonathan Bamber, Director of the Bristol Glaciology Centre, in comments to the Science Media Centre. 

He said on the current trajectory, sea level rise could exceed two metres (more than six feet) by 2100, which could displace some 630 million people worldwide. 

“The consequences of that are unimaginable,” said Bamber.

“What is required now is profound and comprehensive action by every nation and state actor to limit further and deeper climate breakdown.”

Global COP26 climate negotiations are the “last, best hope” to keep the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C alive, said summit president Alok Sharma as he opened the meeting on Sunday.

The Glasgow gathering, which runs to November 12, comes as an accelerating onslaught of extreme weather events across the world underscores the devastating impacts of climate change from 150 years of burning fossil fuels. 

“We know that our shared planet is changing for the worse,” said Sharma at the opening ceremony. 

Experts warn that only transformative action in the next ten years will help stave off far more cataclysmic impacts.

And the warming of the planet did not pause for the Covid-19 pandemic, which caused the UN meeting to be delayed by a year.   

COP26 inherits its central goal from the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement, which saw countries agree to cap global warming at “well below” 2C above pre-industrial levels, and 1.5C if possible.

That deal left many crucial details to be worked out, while emissions reductions remain woefully insufficient to avert global warming. 

In August a bombshell “code red” report from the world’s top climate science body warned that Earth’s average temperature will hit the 1.5C threshold around 2030, a decade earlier than projected only three years ago.

And last week a UN report said even the latest, most ambitious carbon cutting commitments would still lead to “catastrophic” warming of 2.7C. 

COP26 now marks the “last, best hope to keep 1.5C in reach”, said Sharma.

“If we act now and we act together we can protect our precious planet,” he said.

– ‘Investing in extinction’ –

Much rests on commitment from G20 leaders of richer nations — currently meeting in Rome — whose economies account for about 80 percent of carbon pollution.

They have collectively endorsed the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels, according to a final draft summit statement obtained by AFP on Sunday.

UN climate chief Patricia Espinosa told the Glasgow opening ceremony that nations must turn away from business as usual or accept that “we are investing in our own extinction”.

More than 120 heads of state and government will make the trip to Glasgow for the UN meeting, including US President Joe Biden, France’s Emmanuel Macron, India’s Narendra Modi and Australia’s Scott Morrison.

But President Xi Jinping of China, the world’s largest emitter, has not left his country during the pandemic and will not be travelling to Glasgow. 

Vladimir Putin of Russia, another major polluter, will also be a no-show.

As things stand “there is a serious risk that Glasgow will not deliver,” warned United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in comments to the G20 on Saturday. 

“Several recent climate announcements might leave the impression of a rosier picture,” he said. 

“Unfortunately, this is an illusion.”

Nations under pressure to reboot their Covid-lashed economies continue to subsidise fossil fuels, even as they tout renewables.   

With poorer nations least responsible for greenhouse gas emissions hit hardest by its impacts, inequality overshadows the negotiations. 

The failure of rich countries to cough up $100 billion a year starting in 2020 to help developing nations lower emissions and adapt — a pledge first made in 2009 — will complicate the already fraught talks.  

G20 leaders meeting in Rome on Sunday committed to the key goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and pledged action on the use of coal, but fell short on a target of zero emissions, according to a final draft communique.

The pledges by the Group of 20 major economies, who emit nearly 80 percent of carbon emissions, are viewed as crucial to the success of make-or-break UN climate talks taking place in Glasgow over the next fortnight.

According to a draft communique obtained by AFP, which several sources said was the final version due to be published later Sunday, the leaders agreed to keep in play key commitments agreed at the landmark 2015 Paris accords.

“Keeping 1.5 degrees within reach will require meaningful and effective actions and commitment by all countries, taking into account different approaches,” it says.

Diplomats said the language used was tougher than in the Paris deal, but activist groups slammed the final statement as “weak” and half-hearted.

According to the statement, leaders of countries including the US, China, India, Russia, plus the EU, call for clear national plans that “align long-term ambition with short- and medium-term goals, and with international cooperation and support”.

But experts say meeting the 1.5 degree target means slashing global emissions nearly in half by 2030 and to “net-zero” by 2050 — and there is no firm date in the G20 communique, which speaks only of reaching the goal of net zero “by or around mid century”.

The leaders did agree to end funding for new unabated coal plants abroad —  those whose emissions have not gone through any filtering process — by the end of 2021.

– Lacking ambition –

Environmental campaign group Greenpeace slammed the final statement as “weak, lacking both ambition and vision”, saying G20 leaders “failed to meet the moment”.

“If the G20 was a dress rehearsal for COP26, then world leaders fluffed their lines,” said Executive Director Jennifer Morgan.

Friederike Roder, senior director at anti-poverty group Global Citizen, told AFP the summit had produced “half-measures rather than concrete actions”.

However, French President Emmanuel Macron had earlier said it was too early to write off the success of the Glasgow talks.

Nearly 200 nations are gathering in the Scottish city, with many of the leaders in Rome — including US President Joe Biden — heading straight there.

The Rome summit had to “do its utmost” to ensure the success of Glasgow, but “nothing is ever written before a COP”, Macron told the weekly Journal du Dimanche.

“Let’s not forget that in Paris, in 2015, nothing was decided in advance,” he said.

China — by far the world’s biggest carbon polluter — plans to make its economy carbon neutral before 2060, but has resisted pressure to offer nearer-term goals.

India, meanwhile, argues that if net-zero by 2050 is the global goal, then rich countries should be carbon neutral ten years earlier to allow poorer, emerging nations a larger carbon allowance and more time to develop.    

– ‘Dream big’ –

Earlier Sunday, summit host Mario Draghi, the Italian prime minister, Prince Charles and Pope Francis had all called on G20 leaders — and by extension, the wider group of world leaders meeting in Glasgow — to think big.

Draghi called climate change “the defining challenge of our times”, saying: “Either we act now… or we delay acting, pay a much higher price later, and risk failing.”

Prince Charles, a committed environmentalist and summit guest, had also reminded leaders of their “overwhelming responsibility” to keep climate change in check.

“It is impossible not to hear the despairing voices of young people who see you, ladies and gentlemen, as the stewards of the planet, holding the viability of their future in your hands,” the heir to the British throne told the G20.

Pope Francis later tweeted: “This is a moment to dream big, to rethink our priorities… The time to act, and to act together, is now!”

President Xi Jinping of China was absent from the meeting, as was Russia’s Vladimir Putin, although they were participating via videolink.

G20 leaders launched a desperate push Sunday to agree a joint approach to tackling climate change, with officials working through the night to reach a meaningful commitment ahead of UN talks.

The Group of 20 major economies emit nearly 80 percent of carbon emissions, and a promise of action would provide a much-needed boost to COP26 climate talks starting in Glasgow on Sunday.

But draft communiques suggest they would fall short of a firm pledge to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels or a clear timeline on how to reach net zero emissions.

Experts say meeting the 1.5 degree target — the most ambitious goal in the 2015 Paris climate deal — means slashing global emissions nearly in half by 2030 and to “net-zero” by 2050.

Officials in Rome “negotiated the whole night” and into Sunday morning, an EU source said, pressing for something to take to Glasgow, where nearly 200 leaders gather over the next few days.

US President Joe Biden is among those pushing for tough action in Rome, although his own ambitious climate policy is mired by infighting among his own party.

A senior US official said late Saturday that elements of the final G20 statement “are still being negotiated”.

The official expressed hope the summit would commit “to end overseas financing of coal”, offer “positive language” on decarbonising the power sector and see more countries sign up to targets on cutting methane. 

Speaking to the weekly Journal du Dimanche, French President Emmanuel Macron said the Rome summit had to “do its utmost” to ensure the success of Glasgow, but that “nothing is ever written before a COP”. 

“Let’s not forget that in Paris, in 2015, nothing was decided in advance,” Macron said.

President Xi Jinping of China — by far the world’s biggest carbon polluter — is absent from the meeting, as is Russia’s Vladimir Putin, although they are participating via videolink.

Among the flurry of bilaterals planned on the sidelines of the Rome summit, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Sunday with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and had a bilateral planned with summit host Mario Draghi, the Italian prime minister.

– Going alone ‘not an option’ –

After a visit to the world-famous Trevi Fountain, the G20 leaders were due to hear from Britain’s Prince Charles, a committed environmentalist who has been making the case for urgent action.

The heir to the throne will remind them of their “overwhelming responsibility to generations yet unborn”, his office said.

“It is impossible not to hear the despairing voices of young people who see you as the stewards of the planet, holding the viability of their future in your hands.”

On Saturday, Draghi also urged G20 leaders to act together on climate, but also on improving the delivery of vaccines and on helping the world recover from the devastation of Covid-19.

“From the pandemic, to climate change, to fair and equitable taxation, going it alone is simply not an option,” he told the gathered leaders.

The G20 showed it could work together on some issues, green lighting a deal for a minimum tax of 15 percent on global corporations, as part of a reform plan inked by almost 140 nations.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen hailed it as “historic”, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel — attending her last G20 summit with her likely successor Olaf Scholz — called it a “great success”.

Rome is hosting the first in-person G20 summit since the coronavirus pandemic, set in the monumental surroundings of EUR, a fascist-era neighbourhood known for its modernist architecture. 

Biden, on a European trip he hopes will reassert US leadership after the tumultuous Trump years, also met Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan on Sunday.

Earlier this month the Turkish leader threatened to expel a slew of Western ambassadors, including from the United States, over their support for a jailed Turkish philanthropist.