United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres advocated for ending fossil fuel funding as it is one of the top contributors to global warming, and that transitioning to renewable energy is key to “humanity’s survival.”
In a report by the Manila Standard, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) disclosed that a staggering $5.9 trillion was dedicated to funding the fossil fuel industry in 2020 alone. Subsidies, tax benefits, and damages to health and the environment that weren’t factored into the price of fossil fuels were all included in this estimate. This equates to over $11 billion every day.
This is why Guterres believes that the transition to renewable energy (RE) can guarantee the survival of humanity.
Investing in RE would be considerably cheaper than funding fossil fuels. It would also reduce the impact of climate change and pollution which could save almost $4.2 trillion per year.
Shifting from fossil fuels to RE also offered a multitude of benefits including better public health, economic growth, equality for the most vulnerable communities around the world, and job creation.
Furthermore, the UN Secretary-General encouraged governments to ready energy transition plans and push private and public companies to work and be a part of the transition.
He added that RE should be available to the global public, and there should be an effort to break down knowledge barriers.
Meanwhile, the UN International Seabed Authority is working with its member states to maximize generous mineral resources in international waters as these are fundamental for manufacturing batteries while securing the protection of the marine environment from the detrimental effects of deep-seabed-related activities.