Paris agreement signed, but will it work?

China's Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli and
 UN Secretary-General Ban
 Ki-moon at the United Nations in New York.

New York: In a striking declaration that the world is finally ready to change its polluted ways, global leaders gathered at the United Nations headquarters here to sign the historic Paris climate accord, an agreement that is seen as the blueprint for rescuing the planet.

The question is whether the plan will work.

Year after year, decade after decade, the planet has been getting warmer. This March was the warmest in recorded history. Scientists say the future will be filled with food shortages, drought, rising seas and extreme weather if bold action is not taken quickly.

"We are in a race against time," said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

More than 175 nations signed the agreement on Friday, the first day it could be signed. That is far more than had done so on a single day for any previous global agreement - but it still is also only a step toward the accord becoming international law.

Read that story in today’s Melbourne Age - “Nearly 200 nations commit to Paris climate deal.”