The current secretary-general of the United Nations, Antonio Guiterres, has already established himself as a champion for actions to tackle climate change to all countries and actors, and has recently been quite outspoken in his criticism of the poor outcomes of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), held in Glasgow last month. While there was no doubt that some incremental …
What did COP26 do to deal with loss and damage?
Going into COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland in November, it was already clear that the most vulnerable developing countries wanted the topic of loss and damage from human-induced climate change to get significant attention in the COP process, as well as outside the COP process. Now, after COP26 is over, we can discuss what was achieved, as well as what was …
Who were the true leaders at COP26?
Ever since COP26 ended, we have been bombarded with analyses on how good or bad it was. The COP26 Presidency claimed it was a great success, while the vulnerable developing countries left Glasgow in great dismay over the overturning of their demand for a “Glasgow facility” on “financing loss and damage”. They only got a promise to hold a “dialogue” …
The next step in climate action is creating a fund for loss and damage
One of the new and very politically sensitive topics being discussed at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, as the summit enters its second and final week of negotiations, is the matter of loss and damage from human-induced climate change. This refers to the adverse impacts that can be attributed to human-induced climate change due …
Get the ball rolling to implement effective climate action
Over the last few days here in Glasgow, Scotland, over a hundred world leaders have arrived for the leaders’ summit at the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), to give speeches, hold meetings with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and also have some bilateral meetings among themselves. They are not here …
Bangladeshi veteran of UN climate talks fears COP26 will fail the world’s poorest
Slow action to cut emissions and deliver finance means Glasgow summit will likely fall short of keeping 1.5C goal alive and protecting vulnerable people, warns Saleemul Huq * Climate summit logistics favour rich, but wild weather hits all * Failure to deliver climate finance for vulnerable ‘a farce’ * Youth and big-emitting developing nations start to tip balance By Laurie …
Why should poor nations agree to climate action when the rich have broken so many promises?
Developed countries must agree to pay their share of a deal agreed 12 years ago – or risk a failed Cop26
People in developing countries have been bearing the brunt of climate change for decades. But it has taken wildfires in Greece, flooding in Germany and Belgium and a heatwave and hurricanes in the US for the rich world to really sit up and take notice. The challenge now is ensuring that world leaders listen to what is being said in low-income countries and for wealthier countries to …
What to look for if you want to follow COP26
The two-week-long 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is scheduled to begin in Glasgow, Scotland on October 31. This article is for the benefit of both journalists and readers who will be following the climate conference and want to understand what will be happening there over the course of two weeks. …
The third era of climate change is upon us
The issue of climate change was first identified by the scientific community three decades ago, through the first assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was agreed upon back in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Since then, the issue has grown in importance, and the way …