Bill Gates upbeat on climate innovation, even if 1.5C goal out of reach

FILE PHOTO: Bill Gates, trustee and co-chair of the Global Commission on Adaptation, arrives to speak during the 2019 United Nations Climate Action Summit at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 23, 2019. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When it comes to climate change, Bill Gates considers himself a realist - even if that means admitting the world has no chance limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Given "the overall scale of our industrial economy ... we're going to have to do mind-blowing work to stay below 2 degrees," he said.