![]() All countries must embrace more ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions, and then translate those pledges into programs. On the mitigation front, we must move from rhetoric to action in cutting our greenhouse-gas emissions and removing carbon from our atmosphere. Developed countries must uphold their end of that bargain, by supporting both mitigation and adaptation, thus fulfilling their envisaged responsibilities in the Paris agreement. Developing countries have agreed in good faith to help tackle a crisis they did not cause, on the understanding that support – particularly financial support – would be provided to complement their own efforts, which are often limited due to their scarce resources and competing development needs. The question for those of us who will participate in COP27 is straightforward: How can we seize the opportunity the conference offers to create a sense of common endeavor, prevent backsliding, and inspire an approach based on science, trust, justice, and equity?Īt its heart, climate action is a bargain. Join us for our next virtual event, The Energy Revolution, live from COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, to hear from Sustainable Energy for All CEO Damilola Ogunbiyi, Egyptian Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad, US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm, and more. Even in countries that might seem to be wavering in their commitments – say, by investing in fossil-fuel infrastructure – officials insist that stopgap measures necessitated by immediate challenges should not be mistaken for long-term strategies. But a process is underway, and there is no going back. More ambition, scale, and speed are needed, and the rules remain unclear or contested. There is a new focus on restoring nature. My country, Egypt, is on track to produce 42% of its energy from renewable resources by 2035.Īt the same time, civil society is devising mechanisms for holding companies and governments to account, guarding against greenwashing, and ensuring a just transition. As a result, clean-energy prices continue to fall: almost two-thirds of renewable power added in G20 countries in 2021 cost less than the cheapest coal-fired options. This includes new carbon-removal technologies, electric transport solutions, and renewable energies. Climate adaptation and new forms of collaboration are gaining traction, and investment in climate tech is booming. In my discussions with delegations around the world, I see their determination to make COP27 a success. Yet the changes needed to avert catastrophe are not being made, at least not fast enough, and the developing world is increasingly frustrated with rich countries’ refusal to pay their fair share for a crisis for which they bear overwhelming responsibility.īut there is reason for hope. As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has made clear, every additional tenth of a degree makes matters worse. Millions of people are already battling for survival.Īnd that is with temperatures having risen by just 1.1° Celsius, relative to pre-industrial levels. No society has been left unscathed by more frequent and intense droughts, wildfires, storms, and floods. Global warming is no longer a distant or theoretical threat, but an immediate material one – a phenomenon that affects each of us, our families, and our neighbors. The human cost of climate change is making headlines almost daily. ![]()
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