From now until the end of next week, civil society groups are discussing the communities most affected by climate breakdown and pushing for world leaders to make decisions regarding the future of those communities.
Called COP27, this conference marks the 27th year the United Nations is hosting such an event to take action on climate goals that were agreed upon under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
COP27 began Sunday, Nov. 6 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt and will continue until Friday, Nov. 18.
This year’s discussions involve several crises including the war in Ukraine’s effect on fossil fuel prices, fossil gas in Africa, food insecurity in the Global South and global unemployment, according to a press release.
“From the 6th to the 18th of november, tens of thousands of people from all over the world will attend cop27 to make it clear that all these crises have the same root cause; fossil fuels. …the only way forward to achieve the paris agreement target of limiting global heating to 1.5°C and safeguarding the sustainable development goals is to halt any new development of coal, oil and gas, and to redirect financial flows towards sustainable renewable energy for all.”
Press Release
“This year’s UN climate talks are being held amidst a global conjunction of crises,” the press release said. [The crises are] the war in Ukraine that drove up fossil fuel prices and triggered a new race for dirty energy, in particular the dash for fossil gas in Africa; food insecurity crises in the Global South, unemployment and the exorbitant increase in inflation and the cost of living in many places around the globe.”
According to the press release, tens of thousands of attendees will focus on the topic of fossil fuels, which they believe to be the root cause of such crises.
“From the 6th to the 18th of November, tens of thousands of people from all over the world will attend COP27 to make it clear that all these crises have the same root cause: fossil fuels,” said the press release. “…The only way forward to achieve the Paris Agreement target of limiting global heating to 1.5°C and safeguarding the sustainable development goals is to halt any new development of coal, oil and gas, and to redirect financial flows towards sustainable renewable energy for all.”
An international organization called 350.org created a list of demands for leaders to discuss at COP27. Their demands are:
- No public finance for new fossil fuel development;
- Integration of pledges into Nationally Determined Contribution (NDCs) to be in line with Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C goal;
- Increasing the post-2025 climate finance goal, that strikes a balance with finance for adaptation;
- Establishing a Loss & Damage finance facility;
- Achieving clarity on implementation of the Paris Agreement goals.
“this year’s un climate talks are being held amidst a global conjunction of crises. [the crises are] the war in ukraine, that drove up fossil fuel prices and triggered a new race for dirty energy, in particular the dash for fossil gas in africa; food insecurity crises in the global south, unemployment and the exorbitant increase in inflation and the cost of living in many places around the globe.”
Press Release
360.org’s executive director May Boeve said the conference serves as a reminder to global leaders of their responsibilities and debts they owe for exploitation.
“We are here to remind global leaders of their responsibilities towards a just transition, press them to align finance flows with the goals of the Paris Agreement, and particularly in the case of rich nations, challenge them to pay the debts they owe to countries in the Global South, for decades of exploitation,” said Boeve.
Joseph Sikulu, 350.org’s Pacific director, said areas in the Pacific Ocean are facing damage due to climate change which affect the inhabitants, economies and natural resources.
“In the Pacific we are experiencing impacts associated with a myriad of extreme and slow onset events which affect our people, economies, and natural resources,” Sikulu said. “We are calling for those who have contributed most to the climate crisis to take responsibility for the damage to our islands.”
