We Must Follow Science, Engage in Multilateral Action to Make Peace with Nature, Secretary-General Tells United Nations Environment Assembly

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the UNEP@50 special session commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in Nairobi today:

Excellencies, colleagues, dear friends, it gives me great pleasure to greet this landmark special session.

When the United Nations Environment Programme was founded in 1972, the planet was already showing signs of buckling under the weight of humanity.  UNEP offered the world a new way forward based on a vision for a better, healthier Earth built on the pillars of international cooperation.

In the following decades, UNEP and its partners would work with Member States to combat air pollution, restore the ozone layer, protect the world's seas, promote a green and inclusive economy and raise the alarm about biodiversity loss and climate change.

It has showed that multilateralism works and can deliver solutions for people and the planet.

UNEP’s science, policy work, coordination and advocacy has helped to right environmental wrongs around the world and raise awareness of the critical importance of the environmental dimension of sustainable development.  That work has never been more important.

Humanity continues to wage a suicidal war against nature.  Climate disruption, biodiversity and habitat loss, and pollution and waste threaten our societies and much of life on Earth.  We know what needs to be done.

First, we must protect the most vulnerable, who now number in the billions.  We need scaled up international cooperation to provide the financial and technical assistance that vulnerable countries and communities need for greater resilience.  Donors and multilateral development banks should more than double the share for climate adaptation to at least 50 per cent of climate finance by 2024.

Second, the world must cut global emissions by 45 per cent this decade to reach net‑zero emissions by 2050.  This means no new coal.  And no coal finance.

I was encouraged in Glasgow by the announcement of a renewable energy partnership with South Africa.  We need equivalent coalitions for all countries that have pledged to get out of coal and that need technological and financial support.

Coal needs to be phased out in OECD [Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development] countries by 2030 and by 2040 everywhere else, and every sector in every country needs to decarbonize this decade, especially the energy and transportation sectors.

Third, we must halt the extinction crisis.  That means having an ambitious and actionable post-2020 biodiversity framework to put us on a path of living in harmony with nature.

Fourth, and finally, we must drastically reduce chemical, plastic and solid waste pollution.  That means tackling the drivers of environmental degradation, especially poverty and unsustainable consumption and production.  I am encouraged by the moves by the United Nations Environment Assembly to establish an intergovernmental committee to negotiate a legally binding global agreement on plastic pollution.

We must also transform our financial and accounting systems so they reflect the true cost of economic activities, including their impact on nature and the environment.

In all we do, we need to follow science and engage in multilateral action to make peace with nature.  UNEP supports that science and facilitates multilateral action and partnership.  I thank Kenya for hosting UNEP’s headquarters over the last 50 years, making Nairobi the global hub for the environment.

On this anniversary, let us reflect on the urgent tasks ahead.  We are nearing a point of no return.  And let our successes, such as the Montreal Protocol, give us inspiration for the huge efforts that are needed now to ensure this and future generations can live on a sustainable planet.  UNEP, along with the entire United Nations system, will be central to those efforts.

As we look ahead, let us grasp the opportunities of working together under an active, open and networked multilateralism.  All countries have a crucial role to play in protecting people and the planet.  I wish you a fruitful special session of the Environment Assembly, and I wish you every success in the important work to come.  Thank you.