One time US presidential candidate, Senator Bernie Sanders has called for immediate action on climate change at a roundtable at Town Hall, declaring "we have literally 12 years to get our act together".
Speaking alongside congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Senator Sanders, from the US state of Vermont, said world leaders had little time to act before the next generation pays for our efforts.
"We are living in a moment in history that has never existed before. The best minds in the world are telling us literally that we have 12 years - which is no time at all - to get our act together," he said at the roundtable.
Mr Sanders was referring to a new major report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that urged world leaders to commit to limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius rather than the original commitment of below 2 degrees.
It said reaching those levels will require rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society.
Carbon dioxide emissions need to fall about 45 per cent from 2010 levels by 2030 and to "net zero" - so no more is being put into the atmosphere than is being removed by measures such as planting trees - by 2050, while other greenhouse gases will also need to decline steeply.
Mr Sanders' call for action comes as world leaders discuss the 2015 Paris climate accord at the UN Climate Conference.
