Our planet is running out of air! Every minute an area of forest the size of 27 football fields disappears in the world. According to data from the World Resources Institute, forests shrank by 258,000 square kilometers in 2020 alone. An area larger than that of Great Britain. This is particularly problematic because forests make up one third of the CO2 emitted annually by humans2– Record emissions. That is why they are also considered the lungs of the earth.
At the world climate summit in Glasgow late on Monday evening, more than 100 countries pledged to stop the destruction of forests and other landscapes by 2030. This is what the British government stated. She chairs the UN climate conference.
“From conqueror to guardian of nature”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (57) said in a speech that the climate summit is the largest meeting of heads of state since the founding of the UN. This enables common strategies. Johnson spoke of forests as “nature’s cathedrals” and declared: “They are essential for our survival.” With the planned initiative to protect forests, mankind has the chance to go from being a “conqueror to a guardian of nature”, said Johnson.
The supporters of the initiative include Switzerland and the entire EU. But also the countries with the largest forests anywhere – Canada, Russia, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, China, Norway and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The participating states together cover more than 85 percent of the world’s forests, or around 34 million square kilometers.
For the project, the equivalent of just under CHF 11 billion in public money is to be mobilized by 2025. In addition, there are CHF 6.5 billion in private investments.
Criticism from Greenpeace
Johnson spoke of an “unprecedented agreement”. However, the participants at a UN climate meeting in New York announced in 2014 that they wanted to halve the deforestation rate by 2020 and stop deforestation by 2030. However, deforestation continues unchecked, not least in the Amazon rainforest under the government of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro (66).
The nature conservation organization Greenpeace criticized the Glasgow initiative that night. This practically gives the green light “for another decade of deforestation,” it said in a statement.
Queen addressed heads of state in a video
Queen Elizabeth II (95) had made an unusually energetic appeal to the heads of state at the start of the world climate summit. “In the coming days, the world has the chance to create a safer and more stable future for our people and the planet on which we depend,” said the Queen in a video message published on Monday evening.
Harry didn’t mention a word: Queen praises Charles and William in speech at climate conference(00:20)
She herself hoped that the conference would be one of those moments when everyone would leave the politics of the moment behind and grow beyond themselves. (oco / SDA)