Addressing the UN General Assembly on March 28, 2019, MARÍA FERNANDA ESPINOSA GARCÉS (Ecuador), President of the General Assembly, warned the Assembly that “we are the last generation that can prevent irreparable damage to our planet”. Worldwide, thousands of students are mobilizing around the message that we do not have a planet B and there is no future without a planet, she said, calling for their pleas not to fall on deaf ears. Against that backdrop, she stressed the need to act. “Eleven years is all we have ahead of us to change our direction,” she said, citing the findings of the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report. “2019 must be the year of climate action at all levels,” she stressed.
She called for a change in global patterns of consumption. Every year 1.3 billion tons of food are wasted as some 2 billion people suffer of hunger and malnutrition. Development in harmony with nature is possible and sustainability efforts must incorporate cities — where 70 per cent of global carbon emissions are produced. “I invite you all to commit to 2020 being the last year carbon emissions increase due to human activities,” she said, noting that achieving the Sustainable Development Goals requires meeting climate benchmarks. Inaction in the face of climate change will lead to deteriorating global health standards. She concluded by calling for an intergenerational approach to climate change. Children, adults and older persons all live in the same house and must look after it by working together. “Climate justice is intergenerational justice,” she said, adding that States must act collectively and responsibly.