Climate change is an urgent issue that needs a global solution, former US vice president Al Gore said on Friday.

"We are running out of time...we must have a planetary solution to a planetary crisis," the Nobel laureate told a session of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos.

His call for urgency came as world leaders prepare to meet at a United Nations conference on climate change in Copenhagen at the end of this year to set a global framework for tackling the issue.

"What we most need out of Copenhagen is a clear, shared vision of where the world is going in the future," Gore said. "The assumption that we can continue on this path is the assumption that we are collapsing."

There are hopes that the new US administration will take a more active role in the negotiations to reach a new global agreement.

To reflect the change of commitment, the US House of Representatives recently passed an US$819 billion stimulus package that includes spending on energy-efficient projects.

"The new administration is very serious about this," Gore said. "Obama is the greenest person in the room (White House). He is pushing hard for a dramatic and bold move in the right direction."

"If other governments do the same then we can make the change to a low-carbon future," he added.

(Xinhua News Agency January 31, 2009)