Naturalist David Attenborough urges leaders to tackle ‘greatest threat in thousands of years’
Struggle to inject urgency into two weeks of haggling on how to move on from fossil fuels to give practical effect to the Paris accord
British broadcaster and environmentalist David Attenborough urged world leaders, meeting in Poland on Monday, to agree on “ways to limit global warming, to get on and tackle our greatest threat in thousands of years”. Known for countless nature films, Attenborough has gained prominence recently with his Blue Planet II series, which highlighted the devastating effect of pollution on the oceans. “Leaders of the world, you must lead,” said the naturalist, given a “people’s seat” at the two-week UN climate conference in the Polish coal city of Katowice alongside two dozen heads of state and government. “The continuation of our civilisations and the natural world upon which we depend, is in your hands,” he said. The world is currently on course to overshoot by far the limits for global warming agreed in the landmark 2015 Paris accord on climate change, which were intended to prevent more extreme weather, rising sea levels and the loss of plant and animal species. The Katowice talks are b...
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