With dire warnings of planetary catastrophe and urgent pleas to protect vulnerable populations, world leaders on Friday implored one another to stop burning fossil fuels and swiftly reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that are dangerously heating the planet.

At the United Nations climate conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, a parade of dignitaries invoked faith, science and economics in their calls for a rapid transition away from coal, oil and gas, and toward clean energy.

“We cannot save a burning planet with a fire hose of fossil fuels,” António Guterres, the U.N. secretary general, said. “We must accelerate the just, equitable transition to renewables.”

The annual meeting, known as COP28, comes near the end of what scientists forecast will be the hottest year in recorded history. Greenhouse gas emissions, mainly driven by the burning of fossil fuels, have now warmed the planet by about 1.2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. Floods, fires, droughts and storms made worse by climate change are unleashing destruction around the world.