UN Climate Change Executive Secretary, Simon Stiell Tuesday urged world leaders at the COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan to view the climate crisis not just as a future problem but as an economic threat hitting right now.
Stiell highlighted that climate impacts are carving up to 5 percent off GDP in many countries, warning that failing to act will supercharge inflation and worsen the global cost-of-living crisis.
“The climate crisis is a cost-of-living crisis,” Stiell said bluntly. “Worsening climate impacts will put inflation on steroids unless every country can take bolder climate action,” he said.
Stiell called on leaders to learn from the pandemic, which devastated economies when supply chains collapsed.
“Let’s learn the lessons from the pandemic – when billions suffered because we didn’t take the collective action fast enough when supply chains were smashed.
He urged countries to treat climate finance as essential “global inflation insurance” and to see the climate crisis as “public enemy number one.”
“Let’s not make that mistake again. Climate finance is global inflation insurance. Rampant climate costs should be public enemy number one.
“Leaving this issue halfway down cabinet agendas is a recipe for disaster.
“Billions of people simply cannot afford for their government to leave COP29 without a global climate finance goal” he said.
Stiell pressed leaders to direct their negotiators to stop posturing and start finding common ground.
He emphasised that bold climate action could fuel economic growth and job creation through clean energy, noting, “Cheap, clean energy can be the bedrock of your economies. It means more jobs, more growth, and less pollution choking cities.”
Addressing leaders directly, Stiell demanded they return to capitals with a commitment to push new national climate targets that tap into the “boom in clean energy and climate resilience.”
“We also need your direct engagement on new national climate targets and plans – NDCs. So, all of you can benefit from the boom in clean energy and climate resilience.
“These are not easy times, but despair is no strategy. The time for hand-wringing is over; let’s get on with the job,” he said.
