# Marshall Islands leader warns climate inaction threatens familiar world

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/the-world-we-know-is-over-without-urgent-climate-action-marshall-islands-president-tells-cop31/
- Published: 2026-11-11T18:52:08+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-11T19:28:38+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/nov/11/the-world-we-know-is-over-marshall-islands-president-cop31
- Topics: Climate, Government, Politics, Science, Software, Technology, World

## Key points

- Heine urged an overwhelming response to climate change.
- Current policies could bring 2.8C of warming.
- Guterres called for a tax on oil and gas windfalls.

## Summary

Marshall Islands president Hilda Heine warned Cop31 leaders that failing to respond decisively to climate change could endanger the world as people know it. She described how coral near her home island had turned from bright and healthy to bleached within months, and warned that rising seas and floods threaten communities and essential services.

Barbados prime minister Mia Mottley said current policies could lead to 2.8C of warming, while even meeting all pledges would mean 2.6C. UN secretary general António Guterres urged governments to tax oil and gas companies’ windfall profits from the Iran war and use the money to help vulnerable countries. Turkey and Australia are co-hosting the summit; 91 national leaders attended, while Donald Trump and Xi Jinping were absent.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.