**Climate Week NYC Highlights Geopolitical Tensions and Calls for COP Reforms**

NEW YORK CITY – As Climate Week NYC and the UN General Assembly proceed, attendees are experiencing a combination of optimism over the growth of low-carbon energy and concern due to geopolitical challenges.

Al Gore, at the Axios House Climate Week/UN General Assembly event on Monday, encapsulated the prevailing sentiment. He suggested that the UN secretary-general should have more authority in choosing summit locations and leadership, a process currently influenced by regional groupings that lead to geopolitical maneuvering.

Adding to the discourse, former U.S. climate envoy John Kerry emphasized the need for significant reforms in the COP (Conference of the Parties) framework. He indicated that these gatherings require restructuring to enhance their effectiveness.

Rajiv Shah, president of the Rockefeller Foundation, pointed out a hesitancy among nations to make substantial climate finance commitments with upcoming elections. The geopolitical climate, he noted, is causing countries to pause pledges, fearing a shift towards populist policies that could undermine global cooperation efforts.

Colombia's Minister for Environment and Sustainability, Susana Muhamad, highlighted that the apparent stagnation at climate summits conceals deeper economic and political divisions. She argued that merely reforming the COP process cannot succeed unless the influence of the global fossil fuel industry and other powerful interests are addressed.

This week’s UN General Assembly and the pre-COP negotiations are focused on mobilizing new and significant climate finance commitments, particularly to aid developing countries in managing climate change effects.