UN Climate Summit: Major Economies Fall Short; More Action Needed

A statement by World Resources Institute President & CEO Andrew Steer following the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit, criticizing the lack of ambition from major economies while highlighting commitments from the private sector, cities, and smaller nations.

• The UN Climate Action Summit saw 67 countries express intent to increase the ambition of their climate plans by 2020, and 66 countries are working toward long-term carbon neutrality. However, Andrew Steer notes that most major economies failed to meet expectations for enhanced ambition, contrasting with the actions of smaller, vulnerable nations and the private sector.
• Significant commitments were made by non-state actors and specific partnerships: 87 businesses adopted 1.5 degree C targets, over 100 cities committed to net-zero emissions by 2050, and more than 130 banks managing $47 trillion in assets signed new climate principles. Additionally, 15 governments and 10 companies pledged to increase energy efficiency by 3% annually.
• Financial pledges included $1.5 billion from eight countries for the Green Climate Fund's replenishment, bringing the total to $7.4 billion. Furthermore, the World Bank, the Gates Foundation, and several governments provided $790 million to improve resilience for more than 300 million small-holder farmers.

APA

Steer, A. (2019). UN Climate Summit: Major Economies Fall Short; More Action Needed. World Resources Institute. https://www.wri.org/news/statement-un-climate-summit-major-economies-fall-short-more-action-needed

Chicago

Steer, Andrew. UN Climate Summit: Major Economies Fall Short; More Action Needed. World Resources Institute, 2019. https://www.wri.org/news/statement-un-climate-summit-major-economies-fall-short-more-action-needed.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Steer |first1=Andrew |title=UN Climate Summit: Major Economies Fall Short; More Action Needed |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=23 September 2019 |url=https://www.wri.org/news/statement-un-climate-summit-major-economies-fall-short-more-action-needed |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{steer2019climate, author = {Steer, Andrew}, title = {{UN Climate Summit: Major Economies Fall Short; More Action Needed}}, publisher = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2019}, month = sep, url = {https://www.wri.org/news/statement-un-climate-summit-major-economies-fall-short-more-action-needed}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }