By Abdullahi Lukman
World leaders gathering in New York for the United Nations General Assembly have placed climate change and the transition away from fossil fuels high on the agenda as Climate Week got underway on Monday.
The event opened against the backdrop of months of extreme weather, including record heat across parts of Europe and the United States, wildfires in Africa, flash floods in Asia and a record-breaking El Niño.
Australia’s Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, delivered the opening keynote, while Iceland’s Prime Minister, Kristrún Frostadóttir, gave the closing remarks. Both highlighted the impact of climate change on their countries and outlined efforts to expand renewable energy while supporting other nations in the transition.
Albanese said increasingly frequent and intense extreme weather events were consistent with scientific projections of a warming planet. He also highlighted Australia’s efforts to assist Pacific countries in addressing climate-related challenges.
Frostadóttir pointed to Iceland’s experience with geothermal energy, saying the country’s transition was accelerated by the oil crisis of the 1970s, when most homes relied on imported oil for heating.
She said Iceland responded by developing large-scale geothermal district heating, supported by government policies, financial incentives and political consensus.
Today, nearly all Icelandic homes are heated with renewable energy, with geothermal power accounting for more than 90 per cent of the country’s heating supply.
Much of the discussion on the opening day focused on the economic and security implications of continued dependence on fossil fuels rather than recent setbacks in US climate policy.
Selwin Hart, the UN assistant secretary-general for climate action, said geopolitical conflicts had highlighted the risks associated with dependence on fossil fuels and reinforced the need to accelerate the shift to cleaner energy.
Retired British Army Lieutenant General Richard Nugee also urged militaries to consider climate adaptation and renewable technologies as changing environmental conditions could affect military operations.
He cited rising temperatures in Gulf waters as a potential challenge for naval operations and said hybrid technology could also offer tactical benefits for some military vehicles by reducing noise and vibration.
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband similarly warned about the risks of continued reliance on fossil fuels, linking energy dependence to geopolitical instability following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the conflict involving the United States and Iran.
Climate Week, held alongside the UN General Assembly, is bringing governments, businesses and other stakeholders together in New York to discuss climate action, energy security and the global transition to cleaner energy.
