The 2020 Climate Ambition Summit is an important event that brings leaders together who are ready to make new commitments to tackle climate change and deliver on the Paris Agreement, five years since it was adopted on December 12, 2015. This year, the summit was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and was co-hosted by the UN, United Kingdom, and France. The meeting fell on the fifth anniversary of the international Paris climate agreement and ahead of UN COP 26 conference that will be held next year in Glasgow.

Leaders across government, business and civil society gathered for this online summit as the world deals with coronavirus.

In an address to the UN’s Climate Ambition Summit on Saturday, Apple CEO, Tim Cook, called for both governments and businesses to implement stronger climate targets from the beginning of 2021, touting Apple’s own climate plan, which he described as “unrivalled in its ambition”. Cook said "This year, Apple has accelerated our progress,”. Adding “We became carbon neutral for our worldwide corporate emissions. Already, we’re helping 95 of our suppliers transition to 100% renewable energy, a number we continue to grow.”

Cook also noted that Apple’s goal for its entire supply chain to be carbon neutral by 2030 is 20 years more aggressive than the goal set by the United Nations.

Cook was one of a handful of non-state leaders to address the Summit. Under his leadership, Apple has made changes to its business model that have been commended by environmental and sustainability experts. He has also criticized the decision of the Trump administration to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement in 2017, describing the move as “wrong for our planet”.

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