Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the UN and chair of the Global Center on Adaptation, is seen speaking during a press briefing on the upcoming Climate Adaptation Summit 2021 to be held Jan. 25 and 26. Sem van der Wal / ANP / AFP/ Getty Images
Political leaders from around the world appeared online for the first Climate Adaptation Summit on Monday aimed at preparing the planet for the effects of the climate crisis.
The list of speakers included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The summit is being hosted by the Netherlands.
The host nation launched the event by announcing a pledge to pump €20 million ( million) into a fund to help the world’s least-developed nations adapt to changes related to the climate.
A further €100 million (1 million) has been earmarked to support sustainable farming in Africa’s Sahel region.
The current and former heads of the UN Antonio, Guterres and Ban Ki-Moon, are also taking part in the meeting in order to produce an “adaptation action agenda.”
U.S. President Joe Biden’s newly appointed climate envoy John Kerry was also set to talk during the summit.
Kerry said on Thursday that he lamented the “wasted years” under Donald Trump’s presidency when little was done to slow climate change.
One of Biden’s first acts after entering the Oval Office was to sign an executive order to bring the U.S. back into the Paris Agreement.
Reposted with permission from Deutsche Welle.
- 'All Hands on Deck' Declares Ban Ki-moon at UN Climate Summit ...
- Climate Summit Aims to 'Take Ambition to the Next Level' - EcoWatch
- UN Urges World Leaders to Declare 'Climate Emergency' at Virtual ...