'One Planet' summit aims to inject dose of optimism in battle against global warming

FRENCH President Emmanuel Macron co-hosts on Sunday the "One Planet" Summit at the United Nations in New York. The landmark event, which will see both government and private sector leaders in attendance, is intended to give a jolt of optimism at a time when there is growing pessimism about the battle to tackle climate change.

There is not just the ongoing tragedy of increased deforestation in the Amazon. In addition, more and more data is alarming climate scientists such as Professor Sir David King, who asserted on Monday that extreme events linked to global warming are occurring sooner than forecast and that resulting weather phenomenon are "scary".

Sunday's summit - which is co-hosted by UN Secretary-General António Guterres; President of the World Bank Group Jim Yong Kim; and UN Special Envoy for Climate Action Michael Bloomberg - comes around the fourth anniversary of the landmark agreement of the Paris climate change treaty. That accord was ratified in almost record time for such a comprehensive, international pact.