Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro has called on global leaders to focus on combating the worldwide effects of climate change, instead of international conflict.
“It has been a year in which humanity lost and without hesitation has advanced the times of extinction,” he said. “It would seem as though the global leadership has made enemies with life.”
Instead of continued fighting, Petro said, the world ought to focus its attention on the changing climate.
“I propose ending the war so we have the time to save ourselves,” Petro said.
A report last year found there were more than 59 million people worldwide who had been internally displaced in their countries, most of them by climate-related disasters.
This year alone has seen heavy rainfall, numerous landslides, deadly floods, hurricanes, typhoons, and wildfires, among others.
That population is greater than those forcibly displaced by conflict worldwide, the U.N. says.
Experts have suggested that the climate will play a greater part in natural disasters now and going forward.
