Global temperature rises to exceed 1.5 Celsius 'within a few years', UN says - Asia & Pacific - The Jakarta Post

Asia & Pacific

The United Nations Environment Programme said bringing temperature rises back to below 1.5C was "possible but highly uncertain," and would require rapid emission cuts as well as interventions to remove carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere.

A helicopter drops water on burning forests and land in the Petuk Katimpun area, Palangka Raya, in Central Kalimantan, on August 13, 2026. (AFP/Reina)

Global temperature rises are set to exceed the key threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) "within a few years", the UN's environmental body said on Wednesday, creating more extreme weather and intensifying pressure on ecosystems, glaciers and low-lying coastal cities. The United Nations Environment Programme said bringing temperature rises back to below 1.5C was "possible but highly uncertain," and would require rapid emission cuts as well as interventions to remove carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere.

Under the 2015 Paris Agreement governments committed to keeping temperature rises within 1.5C to limit the impacts of extreme weather.