Billie Eilish to star at Paris Climate concert

PARIS (AFP): Billie Eilish will bring star power to a concert in Paris next month promoting a campaign to retool global finance to battle climate change, the NGO Global Citizen said Tuesday.

The US pop star will appear alongside Lenny Kravitz and other musicians on June 22 on the sidelines of an international conference sponsored by French President Emmanuel Macron.

The meeting will discuss ideas put forward by Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, who suggested earlier this year that international lenders should turn “billions to trillions” for initiatives to cut carbon pollution, and governments should ramp up taxes on fossil fuels.

Mottley called for world leaders to join the Paris summit, scheduled for June 22-23.

“This year — and this summit — are critical for the restoration of justice and equity within the global financial systems that continue to abandon and overlook poor and climate-vulnerable countries,” she said in a statement from Global Citizen announcing the concert.

Her ideas have gained traction among the large economies that hold sway over the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, raising hopes of action in the coming months.

“Crises are multiplying and the number of those who place their hope in peace and multilateralism will only grow if we, as a global community, demonstrate that we are there to help the most vulnerable,” Macron said in the statement.

The concert, titled “Power Our Planet: Live in Paris”, will also feature performances from H.E.R., Jon Batiste and Ben Harper among others, Global Citizen said.