For 50 years, governments have failed to act on climate change. No more excuses | Christiana Figueres et al

Conflict and Covid make these troubling times, but national leaders must cooperate and take action now

At the end of February this year, the world's governments signed on to a statement that was startling in its strength and clarity. The cumulative scientific evidence is unequivocal: Climate change is a threat to human wellbeing and planetary health," reads the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report. Any further delay in concerted anticipatory global action on adaptation and mitigation will miss a brief and rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a liveable and sustainable future for all.'"

You might think that political leaders could have no higher priority than securing a liveable and sustainable future". Is that not what all of us, in every country, need and want for ourselves and for future generations? It is true that other issues are causing grave concern in many societies: governments worldwide are tackling poverty and hunger, wars and civil conflicts, the rising cost of food and energy, health systems and economies crippled by Covid-19.

Christiana Figueres was executive secretary of UNFCCC from 2010 to 2016

Yvo de Boer was executive secretary of UNFCCC from 2006 to 2010

Michael Zammit Cutajar was executive secretary of UNFCCC from 1991 to 2002