The United Nations chief implored government leaders to protect the Earth’s 8.1 billion people from withering heat waves that in recent days have caused deaths, blackouts and drought conditions around the world.
The urgent plea came days after the planet set a new record for the hottest day ever recorded — and then immediately broke it.
On one level, the four-point call-to-action seems almost quaint. Scientists and health officials have known for decades that people have been heating up the planet at great risk to themselves.
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But the stark warning delivered by U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres underscored how the consequences of global warming have become more apparent — and dangerous — in recent years.
