The threats posed by the changing global climate are gathering faster than our efforts to address them, President Barack Obama said in his speech to world leaders at today's United Nations Climate Summit, at which he announced a range of new U.S. efforts to combat global warming.

"The alarm bells are ringing, our citizens keep marching," Obama added in his roughly 20-minute speech, noting that the world experienced its warmest summer on record this year as extreme weather events like the wildfires and historic drought plaguing the American west have become more common. "We cannot pretend we do not hear them. We have to answer the call."

The president used his speech to announce new ways the U.S. will use its technological prowess to help vulnerable communities and nations strengthen their resilience to the impacts of global warming, through more than a dozen new partnerships with countries around the world.

"We cannot condemn our children and their children to a future that is beyond their capacity to repair," Obama said in his announcement, adding that nations need to act in concert with one another -- and swiftly -- to meet the challenges climate change poses. "No nation can meet this global threat alone."

At the top of the president's list of proposals is a new executive order that will require federal agencies to incorporate climate change in the planning of future international development programs and investments. [See full list here.]

He also said the U.S. will meet its goal to cut its carbon pollution 17 percent from 2005 levels in the next five years.

The United States has made progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and advancing clean energy programs, Obama said, noting that the U.S. "now harness[es] three times as much electricity from the wind and 10 times as much from the sun as we did when I came into office."

But even though major steps have been taken, he added, they're just the beginning of what needs to be done:

Today's announcements follow a busy year so far for the president on climate change. In June, the White House and the Environmental Protection Agency announced a new rule that will require power plants nationwide to cut their carbon emissions by 30 percent over the next 15 years.

That followed the May release of the National Climate Assessment, which painted a portrait of a nation already grappling with large-scale impacts from climate change on extreme weather, crop production and health, and the creation of a $1 billion Climate Resilience Fund to help communities across America plan and implement technology and infrastructure projects designed to help them cope with climate impacts.

The president's comments today were part of an effort by more than 120 world leaders at the annual U.N. General Assembly to galvanize support for a global climate treaty, set to be finalized next year in France.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the summit's host, asked representatives of nations to come to New York with specific pledges in hand to mitigate climate change, as a way to show they're serious about ambitious emissions reductions in the treaty.

This year and next, the U.S. plans to press for "an ambitious, inclusive, and pragmatic global climate agreement" in 2015, the White House said, adding that the president "intends to put forward a robust post-2020 climate commitment in the context of other major economies doing the same."

You can see the full list of President Obama's actions to strengthen global climate change resilience here, or read his speech here.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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