2. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is hosting this Climate Summit on Sept. 23, 2014, to engage world leaders from government, finance, business and civil society to catalyse climate action.

3. In February 2014, Mr. Ban, in a letter, invited President Mahinda Rajapaksa to participate in the Summit.

4. The U.N Secretary-General has requested heads of state/government to announce strategies that their countries will implement to reduce emissions, strengthen climate resilience and mobilise political will for an agreement by 2015 that will limit the world to a rise in global temperature that is less than two degrees Celsius. Attending heads of state/government will present their “national statements” that will outline a vision to achieve this goal.

5. Approximately 120 heads of state/government are expected to participate in the Summit, which is considered to be the largest gathering of world leaders in the history of climate change talks.

6. The Summit will consist of moderated discussions on four specific themes:

 Climate, Health and Jobs
 Climate Science
 Economic Case for Action
 Voices from the Climate Front Lines

7. Leaders from all sectors – government, business, finance and civil society, are expected to make bold commitments to action in eight identified critical areas: Agriculture, cities, energy, financing, forests, industry, resilience and transportation.

HC/IMU_Source: United Nations, Ministry of External Affairs