President Sheikh Khalifa’s granddaughter is calling on all people to tackle climate change, cut pollution and reduce single-use plastics.

In an exclusive interview with The National, Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan also reflected on the environmental legacy of her great-grandfather, Sheikh Zayed, the ingenuity of the people who lived here before the oil boom and the UAE’s responsibility as a fossil-fuel-producing nation.

The future impact on the region’s health and youth will be the focus of critical United Nations discussions on the global threat of climate change being held in Abu Dhabi this summer, the UAE’s environment minister said.

In June, the UAE will host the preparatory conference for the UN 2019 Climate Summit (Cop25).

For decades, Pakistan has struggled to manage urgent crises, ranging from infrastructure woes to terrorism. While its policies focus on short-term conventional threats, a potentially devastating danger lurks in the shadows: Climate change. As the impact of global warming continues to grow, the political and economic instability it brings will threaten Pakistan’s security. The Pakistani government must prioritise its response to climate change in order to mitigate environmental threats and prevent future calamities.

The cost of natural disasters in Australia is 50% more than previously estimated– $9bn in 2015 – and is set to increase to $33bn by 2050 even ignoring the effect of climate change, according to two reports commissioned by the Australian Business Roundtable for Disaster Resilience and Safer Communities.

The reports included the first analysis of the economic costs of social impacts of natural disasters, and concluded they cost the economy more than tangible impacts like damage to property.