The United Nations (UN) is reiterating its call for immediate action on climate change, noting that the year 2019 is a critical year — a last chance of sorts — for the international community to take effective and significant steps in addressing the worsening climate conditions around the world.

According to UN General Assembly president Maria Espinosa during the briefing at the UN headquarters in New York to announce the UN’s roadmap to the Climate Summit in September, the deadline for achieving the first targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is fast approaching.

The 2030 Agenda, a part of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) described by Secretary-General António Guterres as “the UN’s blueprint for peace, justice and prosperity on a healthy planet,” is a viable tool to give the international community better insights on climate change.

“Two-thirds of these targets depend on climate and environment goals and a five-fold increase in commitments from their current levels is needed in order to meet the targets set at the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement on dealing with greenhouse gas emissions mitigation, adaptation and finance, due to come into force in 2020,” Espinosa said.

She added that the unfolding events prior to the Climate Summit in September share two goals: A doubling of commitments and ambition at a national level; and ensuring the inclusion of diverse groups in the process of climate action.

There are only between 10 and 12 years left to achieve the goals and called for a ramping up of ambition despite the challenges.

In March, the General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Climate and Sustainable Development for All will be held, which is intended to build on the success of COP24, the 2018 climate conference in Katowice, Poland that led to the establishment of a “rulebook” for the reporting of emissions and the progress made in cutting them, every year from 2024.

“The March meeting will welcome representatives of the private sector, civil society and young people, and look to harness the enthusiasm of the latter group who will be most affected by a warming world,” Espinosa said.

On 30 June this year, a “stocktaking” event will take place in Abu Dhabi, followed by a High-Level Political Forum under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council in July, which will see a review of the progress made in achieving Goal 13 of the SDG — in which the Daily Tribune is a media partner — which describes the “urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.”

The Climate Summit will be followed by the first-ever High-Level Political Forum on Climate Action, sponsored by the General Assembly on 24 September and will be rounded off by the 2019 Climate Conference COP25, which will take place in Chile.

Espinosa stressed that multilateralism is the only effective tool to combat climate change, which is one of the main challenges facing the world and can only be overcome with constructive input from all.

Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on the Climate Summit, Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba of Mexico, on the other hand, said that “the world is falling well behind targets for combating climate change, with only around a third of the necessary work currently completed.”

He reminded delegates that there are only between 10 and 12 years left to achieve the goals and called for a ramping up of ambition despite the challenges and work on an optimistic signal that it is possible to counter climate change, enjoy economic growth and eradicate poverty.

“We can also meet social needs, healthcare needs and human rights needs,” he said and bring about a “win-win situation to answer the doubters.”

“2019 needs to see action, including partnerships with the private sector and civil society, and a huge mobilization of resources — a target of 1 trillion dollars per year to support developing countries has been set — to invest “in our future, for jobs in a green future,” said De Alba.