The State of Climate report, released by the United Nations, has pointed out that key indicators of climate change such as greenhouse gas concentrations, ocean heat, sea-level rise and ocean acidification, climbed by record margins last year, a local daily has commented.

"In fact, the sheer scope of the climate change seems to be exceeding our society’s ability to adapt. That is the reason our response must change too," said Gulf News in an editorial on Sunday.

The US climate envoy John Kerry set the tone for how the world’s response must be when he spoke at the recent World Economic Forum, noting that we have the technology to fight climate change, but it just needs to scale up.

"It is incumbent upon countries to strictly adhere to limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid a catastrophe. The COP26 climate change conference was a step in that direction. It led to countries agreeing upon the Glasgow Climate Pact that urges governments to commit and contain deforestation and global methane emissions while transitioning to net-zero emissions, among other measures.

"Climate change isn’t something that will happen decades in the future; its effects are happening now. It is true that we may cope with the fallouts for a while, but there will come a point when we will not be in a position to do so because the scale of catastrophe will be immense," added the editorial comment.

"The climate crisis is solvable. It needs commitment at multiple levels government, business and society. Progress in renewable energy can lead to a large reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Businesses need urgent plans for navigating a transformation and redefining the business model for a low-carbon world. This will lead the way in building a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy that helps all people thrive," concluded the Dubai-based daily.