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Bainimarama tells world leaders to act now

September 13, 2018 1:01 am

“Let’s Talanoa Mada.”

Opening the Talanoa dialogue event at the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco this morning – Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama has urged world leaders to listen and act now.

Bainimarama told those gathered to implement the ideas that they have gathered, on behalf of the 7.5 billion people who call this planet home.

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He says the Pacific way of story-telling, the Talanoa Dialogue, brings the horrific tales from the islands and allows leaders to understand how they can be more ambitious in collective responses to climate change.

The COP23 President told the leaders the idea behind the dialogues are to swap best practices and canvass ways of raising our collective ambition.

Bainimarama says this platform sets the groundwork for when political leaders will meet at COP24 in December, so they are able to signal their commitment to stepping up ambition.

The Prime Minister urges, now more than ever, we must shift the current global debate to the opportunities that will flow with imagination and creating an unstoppable force for change.

Bainimarama also highlighted that the current Nationally Determined Contributions are do not incorporate the best ideas and solutions that are being implemented at the sub-national level.

He adds this needs to change.

Leaders need to get the message out loud and clear that the current NDCs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions made under the Paris Agreement fall far short of the target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above that of the pre-industrial age.