As vulnerable nations face existential threats, the upcoming UN CoP 30 summit in Belem confronts the critical question: can global leaders finally rise to the climate challenge, or will inadequate commitments continue to imperil humanity?

Frequent and destructive climate events from heat waves to wildfires to drought to heavy downpours causing landslides and flooding across the countries in recent months have disrupted lives and livelihoods resulting in loss of GDP growth everywhere. World leaders have rolled out some actions against Trump’s tariff imposition on imports, but none have come up with proper action against his attack on environment. Top economists Catherine L Kling, Stephen Polasky and Kathleen Segerson have called peers around the World to push back against Trump’s consistent attack on environmental laws by educating public through local, national and international NGOs. Environmental catastrophes are on course to reduce economic efficiency and are threat to people all round including Americans.

Some of the key reversals by Trump are — withdrawal from Paris climate accord, removing well established effects of climate breakdown on public welfare in any consideration in federal policy, ending research funding on environment and climate, executive order “drill baby drill” prioritising fossil fuel energy, reducing investments and regulations that tackles presence of lead and other chemicals in drinking water.

His 24th September speech in UNGA, “Climate change is the biggest con job ever”, “Renewables are a joke, they don’t work” did not match with the views of many World leaders in the audience. Reacting to Trump’s observation in UN GA Ilana Seid, an ambassador........

© The Pioneer