UN Warns of ‘Decade of Deadly Heat,’ Urges Global Climate Action -

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the world to “exit this road to ruin” in his New Year message, emphasizing the urgent need for action against the worsening climate crisis.

The United Nations has declared the past 10 years as a “decade of deadly heat,” with 2024 marking the culmination of a period characterized by unprecedented global temperatures. The alarming rise in extreme heatwaves, prolonged droughts, and devastating wildfires has underscored the accelerating impacts of climate change.

In its report, the UN highlighted that the past decade witnessed record-breaking temperatures across continents, affecting millions of lives and causing severe damage to ecosystems. Coastal regions have been increasingly vulnerable to rising sea levels, while inland areas have faced worsening water scarcity and food insecurity.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in his New Year message, warned that humanity must “exit this road to ruin” and take urgent, collective action to combat climate breakdown. He called on world leaders to accelerate their commitments to renewable energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and enhance climate adaptation measures.

With scientists warning that the window to prevent irreversible climate damage is rapidly closing, the UN has urged immediate global cooperation to mitigate future heat-related disasters. The declaration serves as a stark reminder that without swift and sustained action, extreme heat events may become the norm rather than the exception.

In his New Year message, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres emphasized the urgent threat of climate change, noting that the 10 hottest years on record have all occurred in the past decade, including 2024. He highlighted the critical need for immediate global action to curb emissions and prevent further environmental degradation, warning that the world is heading down a dangerous path unless decisive measures are taken. Guterres reiterated that tackling the climate crisis should be a top priority for governments, businesses, and individuals in the coming years.

The UN’s climate and weather agency, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), announced that it will release official global temperature data for 2024 in January. Preliminary reports suggest that the past year is set to become the warmest on record, marking the culmination of a decade of unprecedented heat driven by human-induced climate change.

The WMO highlighted that rising levels of greenhouse gases continue to trap more heat in the Earth’s atmosphere, pushing temperatures higher and fueling increasingly severe weather events, including extreme heatwaves, storms, and droughts. The agency warned that unless urgent steps are taken to reduce emissions, these trends will persist, leading to more frequent and intense climate disasters in the future.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres declared: “I can officially report that we have just endured a decade of deadly heat. The top 10 hottest years on record have happened in the last 10 years, including 2024.”

Describing the situation as “climate breakdown in real time,” Guterres issued a stark warning: “We must exit this road to ruin, and we have no time to lose.” He urged global leaders to act decisively in 2025 by dramatically cutting greenhouse gas emissions and accelerating the transition to renewable energy sources.

“It is essential, and it is possible,” Guterres emphasized, calling for immediate international cooperation to safeguard the planet’s future.

WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo emphasized the critical impact of rising temperatures, stating that “every degree of warming matters” as it intensifies climate extremes, including severe storms, heatwaves, droughts, and rising sea levels. She noted that temperatures are “only part of the picture,” highlighting how warming triggers a cascade of environmental changes that exacerbate risks to ecosystems, economies, and human well-being.

Saulo urged nations to prioritize climate resilience and mitigation, stressing the need for stronger global efforts to reduce emissions and protect vulnerable communities from the worsening effects of climate change.

“This year we saw record-breaking rainfall and flooding events, with terrible loss of life in so many countries, causing heartbreak to communities on every continent,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

She highlighted the devastating impact of tropical cyclones, mentioning the recent destruction caused in Mayotte, a French overseas department in the Indian Ocean. “Intense heat scorched dozens of countries, with temperatures topping 50°C on multiple occasions. Wildfires wreaked devastation,” she added.

The WMO cited a new report showing that climate change intensified 26 of the 29 extreme weather events studied by the World Weather Attribution (WWA) network in 2024. These events resulted in the deaths of at least 3,700 people and displaced millions.

According to the report by WWA and Climate Central, global warming contributed to 41 additional days of dangerous heat in 2024, underscoring the growing risks posed by climate change. Saulo reiterated the urgent need for global action to mitigate further climate-related disasters.

The WMO warned that with global temperatures continuing to rise and extreme heat events becoming more frequent and severe, there is an urgent and growing need for countries and international organizations to collaborate in addressing escalating heat risks.

The agency emphasized that heatwaves pose significant threats to human health, ecosystems, and economies, especially in vulnerable regions. It called for coordinated international efforts to strengthen early warning systems, improve climate resilience, and promote sustainable practices to mitigate the long-term impacts of rising temperatures.