Under the Paris Agreement, governments are obliged to take action to cut carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions, with the goal of limiting the average global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
According to the UNEP Emissions Gap Report 2020, current climate mitigation plans are insufficient and will lead to a temperature increase of more than 3°C by the end of the 21st century. Such a significant rise in global average temperature could see major cities largely submerged by rising sea levels (including Shanghai, Miami, Alexandria and Rio de Janeiro); increasing extreme weather including droughts and heatwaves, and the spread of desert and tropical disease to other parts of the globe.
A new study presents the first international 'balance sheet' of greenhouse gases emitted by the world’s largest cities. While cities cover just two per cent of the surface of the Earth, they are disproportionately large contributors to the climate...