New predictions of global warming outstrip earlier worst-case scenarios, reports David Adam.

The UN called on Monday on rich nations to forge a deal that puts climate change and poverty reduction at the heart of efforts to reboot the economy.

World leaders will converge on the tropical island of Bali this week for the start of negotiations that experts say could be the last chance to save the Earth from catastrophic climate change. The United Nations conference of 191 countries is the beginning of talks to agree a new international treaty to cut greenhouse-gas emissions.

Mozambique is among Southern and East African countries that will benefit from new, $100-million energy projects. The United Nations Environment Programme said in a press release issued on Thursday that the projects will use tea and sugar residues to generate energy.

Humanity is changing Earth's climate so fast and devouring resources so voraciously that it is poised to bequeath a ravaged planet to future generations, the United Nations warned on Thursday in its most comprehensive survey of the environment. The fourth Global Environment Outlook is compiled by 390 experts from observations, studies and data garnered over two decades.