New York Climate Week takeaways: Island nations speak up and fossil fuel subsidies come under fire

This week, the fight against climate change took centre stage with Climate Week NYC and the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) running in tandem.

It’s all part of the build up to COP29, the annual UN climate conference which will this year see world leaders descend on Baku, Azerbaijan, in November.

Run by nonprofit Climate Group, Climate Week 2024’s theme ‘It’s Time’ placed the focus squarely on securing a just transition that ensures the benefits of climate action are felt by all.

Big businesses were urged to weigh short-term economic gain against long-term sustainability.

The societal cost of climate inaction should also guide government regulation of industries, speakers said.

“Two-thirds of workers are impacted by extreme heat - there is a cost associated with this,” said Professor Celeste Saulo, secretary general of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). 

“What is needed is translating scientific numbers into impact on society. We need to use these numbers to convince other stakeholders that inaction will cost far too much.”

Incentivisation programmes like the EU’s Green Deal and the USA's Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) are a step in the right direction.

“Since President Biden took office, private companies have announced more than $425 billion [€381b] in new clean energy projects,” said John Podesta, Senior Advisor for International Climate Policy to the President of the United States. 

“More than $270 billion [€242b] of that has been announced since the IRA, creating more than 330,000 good-paying jobs. Last year, clean energy jobs grew at twice the rate than normal jobs in the economy.”

But businesses need consistency so they can make long-term investment decisions, said Will Jackson-Moore, global sustainability