London Climate Week Falls Amid Increased Urgency to Ramp Up Speed and Scale of Action
LONDON – As leaders of governments, financial institutions, private companies, industry and civil society prepare to gather for London Climate Action Week in the run up to COP31 this fall, urgency around climate and clean energy action is increasing.
A statement follows from Manish Bapna, President and CEO of NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council):
“London Climate Action Week falls against the backdrop of significantly increased urgency for clean energy and climate action: The U.S.-Iran war is driving price spikes and energy crises. The rise of AI and data centers is increasing energy demand exponentially and driving costs higher. Scientists are warning we will surpass the dangerous red line of warming they’ve long warned against—while unnatural disasters continue to devastate communities in every corner of the globe. And yet, climate leadership in Washington is at an all-time low.
“While the challenges before us are great—there is hope in the actions leaders are taking around the world. If you look where countries are investing, more often than not they are choosing clean energy over dirty. That’s true for developed economies like the U.K, the E.U., and even the U.S. at the city and state level. It’s also true for developing economies like India, China, Costa Rica and Uruguay. Why? It’s cheaper, and it’s quicker to bring online. It creates jobs, and it lowers costs for families and local businesses alike. It also has the added benefits of less climate and air pollution, safer communities and healthier people.
“So, it’s not a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when’ we make this transition, and how we do it. The open questions are what countries will lead the way, what tradeoffs they choose to make—and whether we will move fast enough to avoid the worst impacts.
“That’s why it’s critical that the world ramps up the speed and scale of action. That means accelerating the phase down of volatile fossil fuels. It means scaling finance for climate and clean energy. It means protecting natural climate solutions like forests and oceans. And it means acting on commitments to adapt to the impacts of the climate crisis that we can no longer avoid.
“If we band together and meet the moment—we can offer our communities and our children a safer, healthier and more prosperous tomorrow.”
NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Established in 1970, NRDC uses science, policy, law and people power to confront the climate crisis, protect public health and safeguard nature. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Beijing and Delhi (an office of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd).