UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued an urgent call to action on Thursday, highlighting the need for better protection for billions exposed to the crippling effects of extreme heat as global temperatures continue to rise unabated.
Antonio Guterres, in a press conference at UN Headquarters, has emphasized the severe impact of record temperatures and deadly heatwaves that have ravaged regions from the United States to Africa’s Sahel, Europe, and the Middle East this summer, resulting in several hundred deaths. The heatwave during the Hajj pilgrimage alone claimed over 1,300 lives.
“Billions of people are facing an extreme heat epidemic – wilting under increasingly deadly heatwaves, with temperatures topping 50 degrees Celsius around the world. That is 122 degrees Fahrenheit – halfway to boiling,” Antonio Guterres stated. “The message is clear: the heat is on. Extreme heat is having an extreme impact on people and the planet. The world must rise to the challenge of rising temperatures.”
Protecting the Most Vulnerable
Antonio Guterres highlighted the uneven impact of extreme heat, noting that the most vulnerable include the urban poor, pregnant women, children, older persons, those with disabilities, the sick, and the displaced, who often lack access to adequate cooling.
UN estimates indicate that heat-related deaths among people over 65 have increased by about 85 percent over the past two decades. Currently, 25 percent of all children are exposed to frequent heatwaves, a figure that could rise to almost 100 percent by 2050.
“We must respond by massively increasing access to low-carbon cooling, expanding passive cooling – such as natural solutions and urban design – and cleaning up cooling technologies while boosting their efficiency,” Antonio Guterres urged, calling for increased financial support to protect communities from “climate chaos.”
Protecting Workers
Antonio Guterres also underscored the need for stronger protections for workers. According to a new report from the UN International Labour Organization (ILO), over 70 percent of the global workforce, or 2.4 billion people, are at substantial risk of extreme heat. This risk is especially pronounced in the Africa and Arab regions, where more than 90 percent and 80 percent of workers are exposed, respectively. In Asia and the Pacific, the world’s most populous region, three out of four workers (75 percent) face significant heat exposure.
Heat stress at work is projected to cost the global economy $2.4 trillion by 2030, a substantial increase from $280 billion in the mid-1990s.
“We need measures to protect workers, grounded in human rights,” Antonio Guterres stressed. “We must ensure that laws and regulations reflect the reality of extreme heat today – and are enforced.”
Boosting Resilience
The Secretary-General highlighted the need to strengthen the resilience of economies and societies, citing impacts such as infrastructure damage, crop failures, and increased pressure on water supplies, health systems, and electricity grids. Cities, in particular, are vulnerable, experiencing heating at twice the global average rate.
Antonio Guterres called for comprehensive and tailored action plans based on scientific data, essential for countries, cities, and sectors to address these challenges. “We need a concerted effort to heatproof economies, critical sectors, and the built environment,” he said.
Fighting the Core Issue
Antonio Guterres reiterated the importance of recognizing the broader symptoms of climate change beyond extreme heat, such as hurricanes, floods, droughts, wildfires, and rising sea levels. He identified reliance on fossil fuels and climate inaction as core issues, urging governments, especially G20 nations, the private sector, cities, and regions to adopt climate action plans to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C. Additionally, he called for an urgent phase-out of fossil fuels and an end to new coal projects.