COP27 – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

This week marks the beginning of COP27, the annual UN Climate Change Conference. Over the next two weeks, thousands of delegates – among them heads of state, business leaders, and civil representatives – will gather in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, to address some of the most pressing issues faced by our planet and those on it.

WHAT’S ON THE AGENDA?

Negotiations will include 4 main items to be discussed:

Climate Finance

It means ensuring that rich countries fulfill their financing pledge of $100 billion/year to those on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Better financing means better assistance for the most vulnerable.

Did you know? The $100 billion target hasn’t been met a single time! The closest we got was at COP26 (Glasgow, 2021), where $80 billion was raised.

Adaptation

It means assisting the most vulnerable communities to adapt to the consequences of a changing climate, through financial support and innovative policies.

Did you know? Adaptation represents only 20% of climate financing, against 80% for mitigation (=reducing the speed of climate change).

Loss and damage

It means helping those who have already suffered unquantifiable losses and damages – loss of lives and livelihoods, degradation of territory, farmland, cultural heritage, indigenous knowledge, societal and cultural identity, biodiversity, and ecosystem services.

Did you know? The Paris Agreement intended to address loss and damage but did not include any liability or compensation. Today there’s still no mechanism in place despite climate disasters being increasingly common.

WHY IS COP27 SO IMPORTANT?

Because climate change is no longer a thing of the future

2022 has been a year of extreme weather: typhoons in Bangladesh, unprecedented floods in Pakistan, heatwaves in Europe, wildfires in North America, dry rivers in China, and droughts in Africa. For millions of people, this year bought home the reality of the climate crisis and its devastating impact on human lives and our economy. It affects every country, on every continent, and its consequences can no longer be ignored. COP27 is an opportunity to mobilize action and increase our ambition at a global level.

Because we’re not on track to reach the Paris agreement

Under the Paris Agreement, countries had agreed to keep global warming to well below 2°C, preferably 1.5°C. As of today, we’re currently heading towards a 2.4°C increase, with a worst-case scenario of 2.8°C by the end of the century – the result of too little action and ineffective policy implementation. However, COP27 could be a real turning point: for the first time, countries are under an obligation to review and increase their climate targets every year.

Because we cannot achieve the Goals without climate justice

Women make up 80% of all climate refugees around the world. By 2030, the climate crisis is expected to push an additional 132 million into extreme poverty. Air pollution is responsible for over 6.5 million deaths each year. We could go on! The 17 Global Goals are all interconnected, which means we cannot achieve one without the others. Goal13: climate action is no different, and is key to advancing gender equality, reducing poverty and inequalities, improving our health, and more. Looking at climate action and climate justice through the lens of the Goals makes those links clearer.

In this time of crisis, COP27 marks an opportunity for bigger, bolder climate action from national and local governments, cities, and businesses. It is critical that the level of ambition is accelerated, robust financial mechanisms are put in place, adaptation is properly tackled and climate justice is centered, with those on the front lines of climate change supported and recompensed by those of us responsible for the greatest emissions.

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About the author:

This blog was written by Sarah Kadouch-Chevalier, Climate Campaigns Manager at Project Everyone.