A draft UN report on a warming planet, seen by AFP, will allow the world to “face the reality” of the climate crisis, Swedish activist Greta Thunberg said on Wednesday.
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) draft projects how species extinction, spread of disease, fatal heatwaves, ecosystem collapse, rising sea levels and other devastating climate impacts are accelerating.
“It confirms what we already knew, that this situation is very dire and that we need to act right now,” Thunberg said. But she added that she was hopeful that “many people are becoming more and more ready to tell it like it is”.
Policy choices made now, like promoting plant-based diets, can limit these health consequences - but many are simply unavoidable in the short term, the UN report says. The 4,000-page draft report is scheduled for release next year. It predicts that up to 80 million more people than today will be at risk of hunger by the year 2050.
“The basis for our health is sustained by three pillars: the food we eat, access to water, and shelter,” said Maria Neira, director of public health, environmental and social determinants of health, at the World Health Organization. “These pillars are totally vulnerable and about to collapse.”
{{/usCountry}}“The basis for our health is sustained by three pillars: the food we eat, access to water, and shelter,” said Maria Neira, director of public health, environmental and social determinants of health, at the World Health Organization. “These pillars are totally vulnerable and about to collapse.”
{{/usCountry}}