Despite Greta Thunberg’s passionate, bold plea, major polluters make no new promises at the UN climate summit in New York on September 23. Her emotional and strong pleas to world leaders apparently made little impact as announcements by major economies fell far short of expectations. The Swedish teen’s speech, in which she repeated the words “How dare you” four times, was the defining moment of the meeting, called by UN chief Antonio Guterres to reinvigorate the faltering Paris climate agreement.
Ahead of the conference, the United Nations issued a release saying 66 countries vowed to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, along with 10 regions, 102 cities, and scores of businesses. But pre-summit predictions of new, headline-grabbing commitments, particularly by the likes of China and India, failed to match reality, angering environmental groups.
However, a major report detailing the dire impact of global warming on oceans and Earth’s frozen zones was approved by the UN’s 195-nation climate science body after an all-night standoff with Saudi Arabia over wording.
The tell-tale signs and impacts of climate change -- such as sea level rise and extreme weather -- increased during 2015-2019, which is set to be the warmest five-year period on record, according to another report of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere have also increased to record levels, locking in the warming trend for generations to come, said the WMO.
The WMO report on The Global Climate in 2015-2019, released to inform the United Nations Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit, says the global average temperature has increased by 1.1 degree centigrade since the pre-industrial period, and by 0.2 degree centigrade compared to 2011-2015.
The climate statement -- which covers until July 2019 -- was released as part of a high-level synthesis report from leading scientific institution ‘United in Science’ under the umbrella of the Science Advisory Group of the UN Climate Summit 2019.
“Climate change causes and impacts are increasing rather than slowing down,” said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas, who is co-chair of the Science Advisory Group of the UN Climate Summit.
The world’s top scientists believe long-term temperature rise must be limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial levels to prevent runaway warming with catastrophic effects.
Matters did not improve much as a succession of national leaders took to the podium saying they understood the gravity of the situation but then failing to announce concrete plans. Environmental and campaign groups reacted with almost unanimous disappointment.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said progress was being made as the climate summit wrapped up in New York. “Action by action the tide is turning,” Guterres said. “But we have a long way to go. We are not yet there.”
However, major announcements by government and private sector leaders at the United Nations Climate Action Summit boosted climate action momentum, and demonstrated growing recognition that the pace of climate action must be rapidly accelerated.
Guterres listed 77 countries that had committed to carbon neutrality by 2050, although those countries combined produce significantly less than half the world’s carbon dioxide emissions. Seventy nations also pledged to do more to fight climate change, 100 business leaders promised to join the green economy and one-third of the global banking sector signed up to green goals, including asset-owners holding over US$2 trillion in assets and leading companies with combined value also over $2 trillion.
Many smaller countries, including Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries, were among those who made the biggest pledges, despite the fact that they have contributed the least to the problem.
The United Nations Secretariat has adopted a new 10-year Climate Action Plan aimed at transforming its operations to achieve a 45 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and sourcing 80 per cent of electricity from renewable energy by 2030.
The Plan was adopted just ahead of the Climate Action Summit to help increase global ambition and vastly increase action to limit climate change.
The global operations of the UN Secretariat represent approximately 58 per cent of the reported greenhouse gas emissions from the entire UN system, according to the latest Greening the Blue report, issued by the United Nations Environment Programme.
The new Climate Action Plan has been designed to transform UN Secretariat operations to align with the goals of the 2018 IPCC report that found there were clear benefits to limiting climate change to 1.5 °C. The Plan follows the IPCC recommendations on carbon emissions reduction.
Speaking at the closing segment, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said “You have delivered a boost in momentum, cooperation and ambition. But we have a long way to go.”
“We need more concrete plans, more ambition from more countries and more businesses. We need all financial institutions, public and private, to choose, once and for all, the green economy.”
Youth leaders including Greta Thunberg drove home the urgency of greater action by leaders, and their determination to hold leaders to account.
A day after thousands of young people marched and rallied for urgent climate action, young leaders brought their message on September 21 to the United Nations for the Youth Climate Summit, the opening salvo of the three day long United Nations Climate Action Summit.
The Youth Climate Summit—the first time the UN has convened a summit for young people completely devoted to climate action — aimed to give voice to the demands of young people to take far swifter action to reduce the emissions that, without action, are on track to reverse the development gains of the recent decades that have improved the lives of millions of people.
The Summit opened a dialogue between youth and decision makers, putting young people in the driving seat with voice and agency to realize their potential and the change they are persisting towards climate action.
Among the Major Announcements
- France announced that it would not enter into any trade agreement with countries that have policies counter to the Paris Agreement.
- Germany committed to carbon neutrality by 2050
- 12 countries today made financial commitments to the Green Climate Fund, the official financial mechanism to assist developing countries in adaptation and mitigation practices to counter climate change. This is in addition to recent announcements from Norway, Germany, France and the United Kingdom who have recently doubled their present contributions.
- The United Kingdom made a major additional contribution, doubling its overall international climate finance to L11.6 billion for the period from 2020 to 2025
- India pledged to increase renewable energy capacity to 175gw by 2022 and committed to further increasing to 450GW, and announced that 80 countries have joined the International Solar Alliance.
- China said it would cut emissions by over 12 billion tons annually, and would pursue a path of high-quality growth and low carbon development.
- The European Union announced at least 25% of the next EU budget will be devoted to climate-related activities.
- The Russian Federation announced that they will ratify the Paris Agreement, bringing the total number of countries that have joined the Agreement to 187.
- Pakistan said it would plant more than 10 billion trees over the next five years.
On Unprecedented Levels of Private Sector Action
- A group of the world’s largest asset-owners -- responsible for directing more than $2 trillion in investments -- committed to move to carbon-neutral investment portfolios by 2050.
- 87 major companies with a combined market capitalization of over US$ 2.3 trillion pledged to reduce emissions and align their businesses with what scientists say is needed to limit the worst impacts of climate change - a 1.5°C future.
- 130 banks – one-third of the global banking sector - signed up to align their businesses with the Paris agreement goals
On Transitioning From Brown to Green Energy
- Michael Bloomberg will increase the funding and geographic spread of his coal phase out efforts to 30 countries. Already, his work has helped to close 297 out of 530 coal plants in the US.
- Countries, including France and New Zealand, announced that they will not allow oil or gas exploration on their lands or off-shore waters.
- Heads of State from Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, and Slovakia, are among those that announced that they will work to phase out coal. The Republic of Korea announced it would shut down four coal-fired power plants, and six more will be closed by 2022, as well as the doubling of its contribution to the Green Climate Fund.
- The Summit also delivered critical platforms for improving energy efficiency and reducing the growing energy needs for cooling, with the “Three Percent Club” coalition working to drive a three percent annual global increase in energy efficiency and the Cool Coalition setting ambitious national cooling targets for its members with the potential to deliver up to 1 degree on the pathway to a 2050 net zero carbon world.
On Scaling Up Financing & Unlocking Barriers to Funds
- Many countries announced new contributions to the Green Climate Fund, the official financial mechanism to assist developing countries in adaptation and mitigation practices to counter climate change, with several countries, including France, Germany, Norway and the United Kingdom, announcing that they would double their present contributions.
- Further, the Climate Investment Platform was officially announced today. It will seek to directly mobilize US$ 1 trillion in clean energy investment by 2025 in 20 Least Developed Countries in its first year.
- Summit initiatives were designed to ensure the actions undertaken would be fair for all, supporting jobs and clear air for better health, and protect the most vulnerable, as well as new initiatives on adaptation, agriculture and early warning systems will protect 500 million additional people against the impacts of climate change.
New initiatives announced have been designed to be scaled-up to deliver impact at the global scale needed. The Secretary-General urged governments, businesses and people everywhere to join the initiatives announced at the Summit, and promised to “keep pushing” for greater ambition and action. The Secretary-General committed the UN system to support implementation of plans presented at the Summit, with an initial report to be delivered at COP25 in Santiago, Chile.
The UN Climate Action Summit opened with anger. “Nature is angry,” said Antonio Guterres. Youth activist Greta Thunberg told leaders “How dare you gamble with our future and continue talking about fairytales of eternal economic growth?”
Although keynote speakers reaffirmed that our house is on fire with impacts becoming more intense and frequent across the world, country speeches which ensued showed that governments are still fuelling the fire. They continue to ignore the science and fail to present ambitious climate commitments. In the end, the urgency and the emergency did not transpire in leaders’ speeches.
The world did not hear many announcements on enhanced targets or phase out of polluting fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas. The world did not see rich countries bear their historic responsibility by committing finance to poorer countries that are struggling with impacts, loss, damage and displacement or those with the political will, but with no resources to mitigate climate change.
This is deeply irresponsible. As the youth said, governments are gambling with people’s safety and lives.
Leaders are shamefully absconding their responsibility to solve climate change, leaving the problem to the youth. Failing to listen and respond to the emergency forces the youth to continue striking and sacrificing their childhood and education.
A few small island states and developing countries, as well as businesses, stepped up and committed to enhancing their targets based on science. Others, like Sweden, Luxembourg and Denmark pledged to double their contribution to the Green Climate Fund. These countries demonstrated much-needed leadership and underscored the feasibility of climate action and ambition. They showed that the energy transition is ongoing and irreversible.
On the other hand, rich countries and large emitters failed to build on the historic opportunity provided by the UN chief to show they stand on the right side of history. Absentees like the US, Australia, Saudi Arabia and Brazil, which snubbed the Summit, have emerged as those that should be held most accountable for sealing our fate. History will judge them harshly and so will the next generations who will soon be marching to the ballot box.
The Summit drew a line in the sand between leaders who united behind the science and those ignoring it and the voice of the people on the streets - siding instead with the narrow interests of fossil fuel corporations.
According to findings released by the group of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) ahead of the UN Climate Action Summit, more than two thirds (69%) of people killed in climate-related disasters in the past 50 years were living in 47 of the world's poorest nations.
The LDCs - which make up 13% of the global population - revealed the toll of extreme weather events like droughts, wildfires, floods and landslides between 1970 and 2019 as they launched 2050 Vision, their blueprint for a climate resilient future.
"Over one billion people in our countries live on the frontline of climate change despite doing the least to cause it," says Mr Sonam P Wangdi, Chair of the Least Developed Countries Group. "The current system is failing. The global response to climate change must rapidly transform to move the world onto a 1.5°C compatible pathway."
The LDCs are asking for an initial US$450m of investment over 10 years in the LDC Initiative for Effective Adaptation and Resilience (LIFE-AR), to help them deliver the adaptation and resilience work outlined in their Vision. This money will support the countries who are the first to join the drive - Bhutan, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Malawi, Tanzania, and Uganda.
The LDCs are also championing two other long-term initiatives that will work to support the Vision: the LDC Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Initiative for Sustainable Development (LDC REEEI) and the LDC Universities Consortium on Climate Change (LUCCC).
As more than half of the people living in the LDCs currently do not have access to electricity, LDC REEEI will focus on getting 100 percent sufficient and affordable renewable energy to all LDC citizens by 2030 and 100 percent electricity from renewable sources by 2050.
In 2020, LDCs will come forward with enhanced nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to the Paris Agreement, long term plans to reach net zero emissions and climate resilience by 2050, and national adaptation plans. These ambitious strategies and plans will also need support from the international community.
Addressing a side event hosted by the Global Commission on Adaptation (GCA) at the Conference Room 7 in the UN Headquarters, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called upon all the nations to meet their commitments to reducing carbon emissions and financing the initiatives of the climate vulnerable countries.
She said that despite being a non-emitter and severely constrained in terms of resources and choices, Bangladesh is doing its best to bring a difference in the life of our people.
“Our commitment to partnership will usher in new and innovative measures addressing climate crisis,” she said, “We’re at a crossroad facing the most serious global challenges of our time … impacts of climate change are increasingly harming our civilizations.”
Sheikh Hasina said the 5th Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) clearly states that adverse impacts of climate change will continue to intensify over the current century unless the world comes up with drastic actions to reduce or stop carbon emission.
Addressing the Climate Action Summit at the General Assembly Hall in the UN headquarters, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said the impacts of climate change have been devastating the lives of almost two billion people globally every year.
“Globally, frequency of extreme climate events is increasing. But in Bangladesh, casualties are reduced to almost nil from hundreds of thousands due to efficient early warning system,” she said.
She said Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change. “We have adopted adaptation and resilience building measures, including an 82-year Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100, to deal with issues on climate change, natural disasters and water management.”
Sheikh Hasina said the government has built 4,291cyclone shelters and 523 flood shelters in the coastal areas to give refuge during disasters. Some 56 thousand volunteers are available to warn and facilitate preparation for danger, she said.
She expressed her delight launching the Risk-informed Early Action Partnership (REAP) – an ambitious new initiative created by the United Kingdom, Finland and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. She announced that over 50 countries and over 20 other organizations were joining this partnership at its launch.
She said Bangladesh has shown how a strong early warning system and a coordinated approach in disaster management can make a big difference. “So, we have happily joined this initiative to share our experiences with other vulnerable countries, as well as to learn from others in mitigating the risks of future hazards.”
Meanwhile, Bangladesh joined the Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030 (P4G), which was officially announced at an event on the sidelines of the 74th UN General Assembly. Indonesia and South Africa also joined the forum. Other partner countries are Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mexico, the Netherlands, Republic of Korea, and Vietnam.
P4G was launched in 2018, with the ambition of becoming the world’s leading forum for developing concrete public-private partnerships on the UN sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
P4G brings together government, business and civil society organisations in innovative partnerships to advance solutions to help meet humanity’s greatest needs in five key areas: food and agriculture (SDG2), clean water and sanitation (SDG6), affordable clean energy (SDG7), sustainable cities (SDG11) and circular economy (SDG12).
In his speech marking Bangladesh’s inclusion into this prestigious global forum, State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam said P4G would provide much needed new and innovative approaches and business models for Bangladesh’s graduation from the least developed country’s category.
Conclusion
In light of general disappointment, civil society turns to the upcoming climate conference in Chile (COP25) and its Presidency to push countries to deliver an emergency package that includes ambitious commitments in climate finance - including for loss and damage, strong targets, and rules on trading emissions among countries.
The Chilean and subsequently the UK Presidency of COP26 must ensure that governments deliver the adequate response to the emergency and ambition that puts the world on a 1.5C degrees trajectory. COP26 is the deadline. But countries should not wait until 2020. They should start now by stopping coal and other fossil fuels, and investing in a just transition to renewable energy and climate resilience.
The pressure in the streets and by civil society will continue until inaction is converted to action and ambition.
