UN Climate Change

The October edition of our Spanish-language newsletter is out! 🌎 This month, we bring you the latest on: 🔹 The Pre-COP in Fiji 🔹 The Global Heat Forum in Bangkok 🔹 Dialogue on carbon pricing in Latin America 🔹 Simon Stiell’s message: AI must help tackle the climate crisis. And much more. 📩 Read the newsletter, subscribe and stay up to date as we move towards COP31 in Antalya.  -------------------------------------------- ¡Ya está disponible la edición de octubre de nuestro boletín en español! 🌎 Este mes, te contamos lo último sobre: 🔹 La Pre-COP en Fiji 🔹 El Foro Mundial sobre el Calor en Bangkok 🔹 El diálogo sobre fijación de precios del carbono en América Latina 🔹 El mensaje de Simon Stiell: la IA debe contribuir a enfrentar los desafíos climáticos Y mucho más. 📩 Lee el boletín, suscríbete y mantente al día mientras avanzamos hacia la COP31 en Antalya.

A UN report has confirmed what some coastal communities are already feeling – the ocean is rising faster than any point in recorded history.  The report by the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres Guterres finds that rising seas are no longer a distant threat: they are happening now, faster than at any point in recorded history. And the pace is accelerating, making sea level rise one of the most profound threats to populations around the world in developed and developing States alike. Between 2014 and 2023, the global sea level rose 4.7mm a year. In 2024, it jumped to a record 5.9mm.  Next week, #PreCOP31 takes place in Tuvalu and Fiji, bringing leaders, country delegations and experts to one of the regions most affected by sea level rise. The Pacific region is at the frontline of the climate crisis, the single largest threat to the lives, livelihoods, culture and security of Pacific communities. This last major preparatory meeting ahead of #COP31 in November in Antalya, delivered in partnership between Fiji, Tuvalu and Australia, is putting Pacific voices and Pacific-led solutions in the spotlight. More about Pre-COP: https://lnkd.in/eg97HaFW 

Climate action does not just need policy and investment. It needs imagination. Last week at Climate Week NYC, UN Climate Change unveiled a new strategy for its Entertainment and Culture for Climate Action (ECCA) initiative, which connects the power of storytelling with climate action. At the core of the strategy is a new ECCA Declaration, a principles-based document under which entertainment and culture organizations affiliate with ECCA's mission under Article 12 of the Paris Agreement: the commitment every government made to educate, empower and engage the public on climate action. ECCA equips members to engage policymakers in their own sectors and countries, amplifies climate storytelling already being made, and champions decarbonization already under way in the sector. Read more here 👉https://lnkd.in/ee-JPecJ

“The climate crisis is accelerating – but so are the solutions.” United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres addressed leaders at the UN Climate Summit 2026 in New York with an urgent call to action:  “We have seen how fossil fuel dependence wreaks havoc – driving up costs, draining budgets, squeezing households. And leaving countries at the mercy of conflicts and decisions far beyond their borders. We must match an accelerating crisis with accelerating action.” The solutions are clear: transitioning away from planet-heating fossil fuels and strengthening resilience, especially for the most affected and the most vulnerable. In the Secretary-General’s words: “Renewables are the cheapest, fastest, and most secure source of new electricity almost everywhere. Clean energy has gone from alternative to unstoppable.  Without adaptation, droughts become hunger crises; storms become debt crises; and heatwaves become killers. We are the first generation with the tools to end the fossil fuel age – and the last who can avert climate catastrophe.” Read the full speech here: https://lnkd.in/ehwkuGDG

Renewables are moving towards the 2030 global goal while energy efficiency and grid expansion are falling behind. Released by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the COP31 Türkiye Presidency, and the Global Renewables Alliance (GRA) during #ClimateWeekNYC, the new report assesses progress towards the landmark energy goals set by the UAE Consensus at COP28. The facts: •    With 693 GW added worldwide, 2025 marks a record for #renewables. •    Whilst the gap to 11.2 TW in 2030 is closing, it is not enough.   •    World must add 1200 GW on average per year between 2026-2030. •    Efficiency improvement in 2025 was negligible and is falling behind. Electrification with renewables plays a key role in meeting the UAE Consensus. Looking beyond 2030, further acceleration will be needed to raise global electrification to 35% by 2035, a roadmap currently being discussed at the #COP31 agenda. Read the report ➡️ https://lnkd.in/g___P5NK

A new report from International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) today shows that renewable capacity additions reached a record high: 693GW. It also shows that thanks to global renewables, humanity avoided almost half a trillion US dollars in fossil fuel costs - that’s more than the national GDP of over three quarters of countries on Earth. Clean energy’s attracting extraordinary investment: over US$2 trillion last year alone, while driving jobs and growth. But much more is needed – to cut planet-heating fossil fuels deeper and build resilience faster. And in the world's climate fight, there’s already a worrying two-speed global transition. AI must help bridge, not inflame, this divide.   We need the industry to respect science and start aligning with global climate efforts – urgently.   Energy guzzling Artificial Intelligence is driving up planet-heating pollution from coal, oil and gas, while ratcheting up energy costs for households and businesses. All while fuelling disinformation, social division, and even larger inequalities of wealth.   AI leaders are now on thin ice when it comes to license to operate, and sinking deep underwater when it comes to public support.   Industry leaders need to step up, including CEOs and boards.   Tech titans need to start showing why the benefits of AI outweigh its skyrocketing costs – for the many, not just the tiny few: By setting and delivering credible climate targets if they haven’t already. Investing in efficiency, building on existing gains. Coming clean about their energy and water use, and powering data-centres with renewable energy – as the UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said.   #COP31 will provide opportunities for tech and AI companies to show they are working for people and planet, as people everywhere are now demanding.   The Industrial Transition Accelerator (ITA) is tackling hard problems head on. Which is what this moment demands.   These efforts are moving clean industry closer to reality, at scale.   19 commercial-scale projects reached final investment decision in the first half of this year alone. Together, worth an estimated USD 43 billion.   Pointing to progress is not complacency. It is essential.   This is the moment to mobilise more: To narrow the gap between pledges and action on the ground.   That will be a central focus of COP31 in Türkiye, and COP32, in Ethiopia next year. Now's the time to double down on climate multilateralism – the bedrock of the world's progress so far. More👉 https://lnkd.in/ecDT5bX2

Time to act is now!   Climate change affects everyone — but not everyone is affected equally. That’s why gender equality is central to effective climate action.   At COP30 in Belém, countries adopted the Belém Gender Action Plan — a framework to make climate action more inclusive, effective, and responsive to the different realities of all women and girls, men and boys.   The plan is only the beginning. Now it’s time to turn commitments into action. 👉 Put gender equality at the heart of climate policy and action. 👉 Ensure all women and girls' voices shape climate decisions. 👉 Invest in gender-responsive climate solutions. Check the comments for examples of what UN Climate Change is doing to implement the Belém Gender Action Plan.   How are you advancing gender equality in climate action?   Share your story using #ActOnTheGAP!