A historic tower clock in Glasgow has become the site of the Climate Clock, a daily reminder of the need to lower emissions to avoid irreversible global warming, in the lead-up to the COP26 climate conference. 

Tolbooth Steeple, in Merchant City, will host the light projection, which will run every night for the next five months, until the UN summit in November. 

Like its famous counterpart in New York’s Union Square, Glasgow’s Climate Clock shows the “deadline” by which the world needs to lower carbon emission to avoid a 1.5C increase in global warming that will trigger irreversible climate changes.

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However, the new clock also offers a glimmer of hope as its “lifeline” tracks the rising percentage of the world’s energy generated from renewable sources.

 “As Glasgow prepares to host COP26, the Tolbooth Steeple is the perfect location for Glasgow’s Climate Clock,” said Graham Hogg, core member of Climate Clock’s Glasgow Team. 

“For centuries, it was here that important proclamations were read out to the people of Glasgow,” he added. “It stands at the convergence point where people from all points on the compass entered the city; and it is unmistakably Glasgow.”

Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken said: “We are thrilled to welcome the Climate Clock initiative to Glasgow.

The Herald:

“We were delighted that Glasgow was chosen as its next location, and it reinforces our reputation as a leading global city in the climate discussion.

 "The team will project a striking climate clock in real-time onto the Tolbooth Steeple and will be a distinct feature in the city, running every night until the beginning of the COP summit in November."

Artists, scientists and climate activists collaborate to the Climate Clock initiative, with their work being showcased in other major cities across the world. 

The original Climate Clock in New York was co-created by Gan Golan, Andrew Boyd, Katie Peyton Hofstadter, and Adrian Carpenter. 

Katie Peyton Hofstadter, Climate Clock’s Director of Arts & Culture, said: “Monuments tell people what we value as a culture. The new Climate Clock monument in Glasgow is telling us we must make building a 100% renewable future a central mission of our culture — or else.”

The launch of the Glasgow Climate Clock coincides with parallel efforts across the world to use Climate Clocks to raise the world’s climate ambitions in the critical five months until the COP26. 

The Herald:

Leading youth climate activists carried miniature versions of the famous Union Square Climate Clock to Washington, calling on world leaders to “do what the science demands.” 

While Pan African Parliament Goodwill Ambassador Jerome Ringo delivered Climate Clocks to African heads of state to promote renewable energy throughout the African continent. 

On Saturday, World Environment Day, a monumental Climate Clock will go up in the center of Rome. Italy has partnered up with Scotland in hosting this year’s COP26 summit. 

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19-year-old UK climate activist, James Miller, said: “1.5°C warming is our global beacon for climate action. The safety and wellbeing of millions of people depends on staying below it. 

“But it is slipping from our grasp; in order to keep that target in sight, we need to reduce global emissions by more than 50% by 2030. Existing pledges from world leaders fall far short of what the science demands.

“This year, at COP26, world leaders have a crucial - perhaps final - chance to unite in pulling 1.5°C back within reach, and keep their promise to safeguard future generations. The world’s youth are watching.”