He also called on world leaders to move faster – and move together.
“Choose to make Belém the turning point,” he said.
“Stand with science. Stand for justice. Stand for future generations.”
So, as the world’s brightest climate minds converge on the city that sits on the outskirts of the Amazon rainforest, experts are asking whether anything substantial will come from these negotiations.
University of Otago associate professor Daniel Kingston told The Front Page that the trajectory we are on is “pretty concerning”.
“About five, six, or seven years ago, there was a special report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change looking at what dangers climate change might be, in particular looking at the threshold of 1.5 and 2 degrees warming.
“When we start to get above that 1.5 degree level is when we start to see some of the more serious impacts of climate change,” he said.
As part of the Paris Agreement, each signatory has to submit an emissions reduction plan periodically, with the latest round happening this year.
“New Zealand did submit an updated emissions reduction plan. The previous one was a 50% reduction in what our emissions were in 2005 by 2030.
“The upgraded plan isn’t much of an upgrade. It’s from 50% by 2030 to 51% to 55% by 2035. It’s met those goals from Paris, but it’s a pretty small increase really.
“The United Kingdom has committed to more than an 80% reduction from its 1990 levels. Even rapidly industrialising countries like Brazil have submitted more ambitious targets than NZ has,” he said.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about:
- Current challenges with the 1.5 °C target
- The significance of COP30 being held in Brazil
- NZ’s emissions targets
- Climate solutions and innovations
- Current climate impacts in NZ.
The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the NZ Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5am. The podcast is presented by Chelsea Daniels, an Auckland-based journalist with a background in world news and crime/justice reporting who joined NZME in 2016.
You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
