Author: Solange Cuadros

High expectations were created for the 22^nd Conference of Parties (COP 22) and the main reason for those was the rapid entry into force of the Paris Agreement on November 4, only after 11 months of its adoption in Paris. However, during the first week of the COP, the election of Donald Trump as the new U.S. president brought uncertainties, as he denied climate change science during the U.S. election and promised to retire the U.S. of the Paris Agreement.

This scenario produced declarations reiterating the Paris Agreement as the Parties affirmed its commitment to its full implementation under the Marrakesh Action Proclamation and reaffirmed specific commitments already included in the Paris Agreement, such as the USD $100 billion mobilization goal.

COP 22 was not actually about a “COP of action” as it initially was labelled by several stakeholders In fact, it was more about a COP of protection of the Paris Agreement and an opportunity for other countries to take the lead in actions against climate change. The international community joined forces to act against policies that do not believe in climate change. Not only China ratified its support but also nearly 200 countries reaffirmed their commitment towards the Paris Agreement.

For instance, with regards to the countries most vulnerable to climate change, a shift in its role was evident. For the first time, these countries did not have as their priority to request funds for the implementation of its climate change commitments, since they were ready to move to the front line of climate change and take ambitious leadership. In that sense, on the last day of the COP, November 18, the Climate Vulnerable Forum, a group of 48 countries highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, launched its vision and commitment to phase out fossil fuel in their countries between 2030 and 2050.

Even though the most polluting countries are not part of this initiative, this shows that countries all over the world are ready to take action against climate change, and are also able to take initiatives to meet net carbon neutrality and implement 100% of renewable energy.

COP 22 set the ball rolling for the following years. However, a pending and important agenda is waiting to be developed with the aim of concretizing the Paris Agreement.  I believe that COP 22 should not be judged as a failure or a success, I consider that it should be understood within the complicated political context and we should try to see the positivity that it brings with itself.

Great expectations were created for a COP that followed a worldwide agreement, the Paris Agreement. Nevertheless, perhaps the importance of this COP cannot be measured by the number or importance of commitments adopted, but it should be realized that it did not lose the global momentum to continue the fight against climate change. Now, we need to act in the climate-change world that we are living, as it has been demonstrated that the global community will not move backwards in this process already started to avoid the climate change impacts in the world.

References:

Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. Outcomes of the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Marrakech.

http://www.c2es.org/international/negotiations/cop22-marrakech/summary

Climate Vulnerable Forum. The Vulnerable Taking The Lead: New Energy for Implementing the Paris Agreement after COP22.

http://www.thecvf.org/vulnerable-taking-lead-new-energy-implementing-paris-agreement-cop22/

CDKN. Climate & Development Knowledge Network. Opinion: COP 22 – “COP of communications and accountability”.

http://cdkn.org/2016/11/opinion-cop22-cop-communications-accountability/?loclang=en_gb

Bloomberg Law. 48 Nations Vow to End Fossil Use by Mid-Century.

https://essential.bna.com/login/signin?msg=deny&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwsauth.bna.com%2Fwsauth%2Fblawauth%3Ftarget%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberglaw.com%2Fcitation%2Fbna%2520A0K4T3H0N1%3Fcampaign%3Dbnaemaillink%26emc%3Dbnainer%253Ablaw%253A1003%26issue%3D20161130%26js%3D0%26sitename%3Dbna%26subscriptiontype%3Dbnainer&lddty=-518&pcv=

The Paris Agreement establishes that the private sector participation will be facilitated in the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and in the implementation of nationally determined contributions in coordination of the public sector. In addition, under Decision 1/CP.21, the Parties recognize and request the private sector intervention in additional topics such as financial resources, cooperation to address climate change, and high level engagements.

In the case of business, after the Paris Agreement, governments sent an important market signal that the transition to a clean economy is inevitable, and for the first time, businesses are required to progressively adapt its portfolio investments and models to keep temperature increases to 2 degrees Celsius by the end of the century. In that sense, businesses with strong climate risk management and resilience strategies are expected to gain investor confidence and protect their operations from climate impacts. This will make these businesses more competitive, allow them to continue generate income and, mainly, contribute to the global challenge of undertaking climate change.

Business participation as well as other non-state actors are necessary to create a process to scale up ambitiously the global response to climate change. Several private sector engagement opportunities are possible to implement such as providing climate finance considering that global additional investment and financial flows are required, contributing to the national commitments made by the countries of its operations, and developing low carbon technologies. For that purpose, numerous participatory channels were created by the business sector and under COP 22 its involvement was expected and has been relevant to building alliances and moving the climate change agenda forward.

In that sense, during COP 22, Global Climate Action Champions (Hakima El Haité and Laurence Tubiana) announced the launch of the Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action, to provide a stable basis for governments and non-state actors to align their efforts in 2017-2020. The purpose of this partnership is to increase cooperative efforts in which businesses, sub-national, local governments and civil society join up with national governments to promote low-emission and resilient development with the purpose to accelerate climate action. In addition, the Marrakech Action Proclamation noted the referred Partnership and called on all non-state actors to join for “immediate and ambitious action and mobilization”.

As a sample of the important role that private sector can have, on November 16, 2016 more than 365 businesses and investors drafted a letter to US President-elect Donald Trump, and other leaders calling to the continuation of low-carbon policies to enable the US to meet or exceed its national commitments; investment in the low-carbon economy to give financial decision makers clarity and increase investor confidence of investors worldwide; and continued US participation in the Paris Agreement to provide the long-term direction. This is particularly relevant considering the global concerns that U.S. President-elect will pull the richest polluter out of the process when he takes office next year, even though, he has recently “softened this opposition” to the international climate change agreement.

In conclusion, the cooperation of non-state Parties is meaningful to face climate change challenges and it is increasingly recognized in the international sphere of actions against climate change. Its participation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is welcome and shall be fostered. However, it is important to recognize that actions by non-Party stakeholders are complementary and not a replacement for Parties’ commitments. Private sector stakeholders cannot substitute the State’s role, specially in the pre-2020 period. A tremendous momentum has been created to keep the promise into action and all initiatives and efforts for climate action are important to increase the support to be provided to governments to fulfill their commitments under the Paris Agreement.

Resources:

Business Backs Low-Carbon USA.

http://lowcarbonusa.org/

Bloomberg Law. Energy and Climate Report. Trump Open-Mided on Paris Deal.

https://www.bloomberglaw.com/document/X2KV2AAS000000?campaign=bnaemaillink&emc=bnaccr%3Ablaw%3A1003&issue=20161122&jcsearch=bna%2520A0K4V7Z8F1&js=0&sitename=bna&subscriptiontype=bnaccr#jcite

Marrakech Action Proclamation for our Climate and Sustainable Development.

https://unfccc.int/files/meetings/marrakech_nov_2016/application/pdf/marrakech_action_proclamation.pdf

Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action

http://unfccc.int/files/paris_agreement/application/pdf/marrakech_partnership_for_global_climate_action.pdf

Climate change raises important educational challenges, as it is necessary to know about its causes in order to recognize the roots of the problem and know about its consequences. It is necessary to build a realistic perception of climate risks, understand our vulnerabilities and learn how to contribute to find solutions. In that sense, there is a need for education to build a lower carbon culture.

Education is a fundamental human right that fosters liberty and personal autonomy and plays a key role in climate change. It is a catalyst for development. Education is sustainable if it enables people to prepare a critical judgment towards principal environmental concerns, and adopt attitudes and behaviors in this regard.

Under the Paris Agreement, the Parties had recognized the importance of education, training, public awareness, public participation and public access to information with respect to enhancing actions under the Agreement. As a consequence, Parties require developing and implementing educational and awareness programs on climate change and its effects, and facilitate access to information and participation in its study. During COP 22, two initiatives have been launched that I consider especially contributive to this purpose.

Climate Neutral Now

First, the program called “Climate Neutral Now” launched by the United Nations Climate Change Secretariat, and that was informed during a press conference on November 12, 2016. The purpose of this program is to reduce current emissions to the point where we reach climate neutrality by the second half of 21^st century. This program has a three-step approach: (i) measure your carbon footprint, (ii) reduce maximum emissions you can, and (iii) offset extra emission investing in projects with UN-certified emission reductions. It is available to governments, corporations and individuals.

Even though, the main purpose of this mechanism is not to educate, I believe that in practice this platform could be useful for such purpose because it provides relevant information in calculate our own emissions, and implement a tool to its solution. Through this climate change credit store everyone can offset its own carbon emissions online.

In addition, through Climate Neutral Now, the Secretary of UNFCCC had signed formal pledges with important organizations. As an example, FIFA had joined this initiative to measure, reduce and compensate the greenhouse gas emissions related to the 2018 FIFA World Cup. People of all social and economic conditions watch this sporting competition so it will globally spread the importance of a carbon neutrality event, allowing people to gradually become aware of climate change.

Traditional Indigenous Knowledge

Second, a side event was held to promote traditional indigenous people´s knowledge as an important mechanism for climate change adaptation on November 8, 2016. The objective was to appreciate and reevaluate traditional knowledge, especially, the holistic land use they have, agriculture and fishing techniques, and use of medicinal plants. From the experience of climate change that indigenous people have accumulated during centuries, they had developed strategies to address this phenomenon which can offer valuable information to scientists in order to find best methods of adaptation.

Education is a lifelong learning process, and it includes not only formal but also non-formal education. In that sense, it is necessary to open the door to recognize and promote strategies for adaptation of indigenous people, and encourage the active participation of indigenous and traditional communities in the discussion of climate change policies. All these will foster a comprehensive knowledge that contributes to global education.

As a conclusion, although greater education mechanisms are needed, these two initiatives are important to educate people, expand awareness of the importance of climate change and encourage them to work on it. Having a climate change credit store to offset your footprint from anywhere in the world, disseminating the importance of climate neutrality through a global event, and promote the transfer of ancestral education of communities; will educate people and keep promise into action.

Resources:

http://ceeindia.org/esdg/Sustainable%20Development%20Begins%20with%20Education.pdf

http://newsroom.unfccc.int/es/noticias/expertos-la-educacion-es-crucial-para-el-exito-del-acuerdo-de-paris/

http://climateneutralnow.org/Pages/Home.aspx

http://www.fifa.com/sustainability/news/y=2016/m=9/news=unfccc-and-fifa-join-forces-to-combat-climate-change-2831391.html

http://www.iisd.ca/climate/cop22/enbots/8nov.html#event-4