Big nations urged to heed climate activists’ demands for bolder action ahead of COP26 summit

COP26 President Alok Sharma said there was renewed urgency in the climate debate following preparatory talks in Milan

Thousands of youth activists, including Greta Thunberg, urged governments to match words with action and stump up cash to wean the world off fossil fuels

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Alok Sharma, president-designate of COP26 in Milan, Italy on Friday. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 5:51am, 3 Oct 2021Updated: 5:10pm, 31 Oct 2021

The world’s major economies must do more at the upcoming UN COP26 climate summit in Scotland to show they are serious about wanting to tackle global warming and heed the warnings of young activists, policymakers said on Saturday.

COP26 President Alok Sharma said there was renewed urgency in the climate debate following preparatory talks in Milan where thousands of youth activists, including Greta Thunberg, urged governments to match words with action and stump up billions of dollars to wean the world off fossil fuels.

“We had a very constructive set of discussions and there was a real sense of urgency in the room,” Britain’s Sharma told reporters after the meeting in Italy’s financial capital.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg in Milan, Italy on Friday. Photo: Reuters

The COP26 conference in Glasgow aims to secure bolder climate action from the nearly 200 countries that signed the 2015 Paris Agreement and agreed to try to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

Sharma said delegates in Milan agreed to do more to keep the 1.5 degrees target within reach and deliver on a US$100 billion per year pledge to help the most vulnerable nations confront climate change.

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