Nicola Sturgeon set to give TED Talk ahead of COP26

The First Minister will give a TED Talk on how smaller countries can act against the threat of climate change in the first of the Scottish Government’s events in the lead up to COP26.

First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon is to give a Ted talk ahead of the COP26 summit

Nicola Sturgeon will give her speech on Wednesday as part of TED’s Countdown Summit ahead of the global climate conference in Glasgow which begins in November.

The conference will also see speeches from UK Government minister, Zac Goldsmith, and former US vice president and presidential candidate Al Gore.

It will also be attended by New Zealand prime minister, Jacinda Arden, former governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, and president of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde.

It takes place between Tuesday, October 12, and Friday, October 15 at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre.

The TED Talk is the first of two major speeches from Sturgeon during the week and will be the first major intervention by the SNP leader on climate change since the election in May and ahead of COP26.

On Thursday, Ms Sturgeon will speak to the Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavík about Scotland’s links with Arctic nations and how all countries must work together to tackle the climate emergency.

The First Minister said: “We are now just three weeks away from what will be one of the most important global gatherings of the 21st century.

"COP26 is our best and possibly last chance to achieve what is required to deliver the goals of the Paris Agreement and safeguard our planet.

“The world must move from promises to action, and mobilise the ambition, finance, resources and joint working needed to deliver on the Paris Agreement goals. Scotland will play its full part in meeting those goals.

“Ahead of COP26, Scotland is delivering on our promise to end our contribution to climate change within a generation, putting a just transition and wellbeing at the centre whilst taking the big and difficult decisions that will create a net zero, climate-resilient and fairer future.”

COP26 will run for 12 days from November 1 in Glasgow.

The conference, taking place at the SEC campus, will see up to 30,000 delegates and world leaders descend on the city to discuss climate change and the world’s response.

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