The UAE will host a high-level meeting next month to generate momentum for the UN climate summit scheduled to be held on September 23 this year in New York.
The Abu Dhabi Ascent meeting will be held on May 4 and 5 and will explore areas for action that will have a high-impact in reducing emissions and building resilience, including adaptation, disaster risk reduction, agriculture, cities, climate finance, energy efficiency, forests, renewable energy, short-lived climate pollutants and transport.
The Climate Summit will be hosted by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on September 23 this year in New York.
"The Climate Summit is a critical opportunity to inspire and scale up the actions that will lead us toward a low-carbon, sustainable future. The Abu Dhabi Ascent will play a pivotal role in mobilising action that will allow us to address climate change," Ban Ki-moon said.
He has challenged world leaders to advance an ambitious climate agenda by bringing bold announcements to the summit.
Ban Ki-moon also said that the UAE is emerging as a leader of a diverse energy economy.
"I count on other countries to follow the UAE's example and to pursue the many untapped economic, social and environmental opportunities of mitigating global climate change," he said.
"This is the defining challenge of our time. The longer we delay, the more we will pay - the sooner we act, the greater the benefits to people and the planet," he said.
The meeting in Abu Dhabi is designed to build momentum for the Climate Summit, which aims to catalyse transformative action and build political impetus in advance of the 2015 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference in Paris, where a global, binding climate agreement will be finalised.
"This is the decade of action," said Sultan Al Jaber, UAE minister of state and special envoy for energy and climate change.
"And the world must work together to find solutions to mitigate the effects of climate change. The Abu Dhabi Ascent adds urgency and reinvigorates the need to address climate change and transition to a cleaner, more sustainable global energy mix," he said.
