Pope Francis, President Barack Obama, and other world leaders are expected to meet in New York during the next week. All together are seeking to reach an agreement that would slow down the rising and concerning temperatures on Earth.
The Pope will attend to the United Nation on September 25 in order to discuss and encourage world leaders to make a difference on climate change. Two days later, Obama will meet with Germany, China, France and other 40 countries’ representatives, as an effort to achieve a deal to regulate greenhouse gases emissions.
In 2009, the las UN attempt to make a climate pact in Copenhagen, ended up in chaos and finger-pointing between developing countries and wealthier, industrialized nations. Six years later, the discussions are back on schedule, with hopes to reach a final deal in Paris in December this year.
While there are still doubts about whether a final deal will be reached, policy makers are more hopeful than they’ve been in years.
“It is light-years different from Copenhagen. The Paris agreement will happen. Let’s see how ambitious it will be, but we think it will be a good one,” said Nick Nuttall, a UN spokesman, in a statement.
According to the Chicago Tribune, the agreement would commit more than 190 nations to limit on heat-trapping pollution. The goal is to keep warming below 2 degrees Celsius or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, the recommended number by scientists for avoiding the most dangerous harm to the environment. The 28 EU nations, during a meeting in Brussels on Friday, said the final accord should call for even a 50% reduction in greenhouse-gas pollution by 2050.
Already, over 30 governments have issued climate plans to the UN, including the world’s top three greenhouse emitters: China, the US and the European Union. Several developing countries where emissions are expected to grow the fastest, including India, have yet to submit their pledges, though they’ve promised to do so by the time of the Paris meeting.
As for Pope France, he will be visiting the US to raise awareness about climate changes and the damages being held to the planet. He will then meet with President Obama in the White House and become the first pope to address the US Congress on September 24. A day later, he will speak to the UN general assembly in New York before continue his tour to Philadelphia.
“For Francis, this is a justice issue. There are countries that are contributing the most of the problem and there are countries that are suffering the most of the impact, and I think he’s going to try to draw the connection and say this is a global responsibility,” said Dan Misleh, executive director of the Catholic Climate Covenant in Washington.
Source: EcoWatch