Sustainable Switch-COP29: Climate funding divisions laid bare
Nov 21 -
By Sharon Kimathi
Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital
sharon.kimathi@thomsonreuters.com
Hello!
It’s just one more day till the deadline for a deal at the COP29 talks in Baku, Azerbaijan, and frustration over the lack of progress is seeping out of the negotiating rooms.
So what needs to be done?
Well, a 25-page document stuffed with multiple options for almost every paragraph needs to become a two-page document that can be refined and then adopted.
Although the 10-page document was slimmed to less than half the size of the previous version by stripping out some options, it summed up the opposing positions of blocs of developed and developing nations established before the event.
Australia's environment minister Chris Bowen, tasked by the COP presidency with gathering the range of views in the negotiating rooms, said he had heard three proposals for the annual figure to be given by richer governments.
These were $900 billion, $600 billion and $440 billion, which compared with a previously announced starting point of $100 billion from the European Union.
Another developing country negotiator told Reuters the European Union had floated $200 billion or $300 billion in informal talks. But on Wednesday, the EU maintained it did not have an official position on the number.
‘It’s embarrassing’
Egypt's Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad, said countries had agreed not to treat the better off developing nations the same as richer nations when it came to paying in.
Such a move was non-negotiable for many countries.
Ana Toni, Brazil's National Secretary for Climate Change, told Reuters it was a "red line for Brazil".
Uganda's Adonia Ayebare, who chairs the G77 and China group of more than 130 developing countries, said its demand was for wealthy nations to provide $1.3 trillion in public climate finance per year.
"The frustration is that the other side has not given us a counter offer," Ayebare told Reuters.
"We are hearing $300 billion. But if that is true, that's really not acceptable. It's embarrassing," he said.
Fossil fuel talks also slow
Talks on speeding up efforts to cut climate-damaging emissions are also proving to be tough.
OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais used a speech at the summit to say crude oil and natural gas were a gift from God.
Austria's climate minister Leonore Gewessler told Reuters the Arab group of countries led by Saudi Arabia had been "very vocal in watering down the mitigation part" of negotiations.
A representative for Saudi Arabia's delegation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Climate scientists say the world is on track for as much as 3.1 Celsius of warming by the end of this century, according to the 2024 U.N. Emissions Gap report.
Today’s COP29 news
Over 50 governments signed a U.N. declaration for climate-friendly tourism, accompanied by initiatives like a framework for tracking data such as greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, waste and energy usage across the sector.
Greece will sign a deal with the European Commission and the European Investment Bank to set up a fund that will help its tourism-reliant islands wean off fossil fuel and reduce power costs, the Greek government said.
Container shipping companies like Maersk, CMA CGM and COSCO, have ordered hundreds of new vessels in recent years meant to help their industry slash greenhouse gas emissions to meet rising demand from customers and regulators around the globe.
In Conversation
Laura Rico, campaign director at global non-profit Avaaz, shares her thoughts on COP29’s thematic day on Indigenous Peoples, gender equality and biodiversity:
“As COP29 talks remain gridlocked, there is an overlooked group with the best solutions to the climate crisis – Indigenous Peoples.
“They already have a proven track record of protecting our planet and their territories are incredible carbon sinks, intersecting 40% of intact land ecosystems.
“Just in the Amazon, Indigenous Peoples have conserved nearly 45% of its intact forests. Yet, they lack participation in important decision-making processes.
“Last month, at the Biodiversity COP16 in Colombia, the Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, Hindou Ibrahim, said: ‘Indigenous People are the Messis, the Cristiano Ronaldos of biodiversity protection, pass us the ball!’.
“But still, parties refuse to pass them the ball.
"The 'people's COP' is not listening to the best experts. Indigenous Peoples don't even have translation to follow the discussions.
“Despite this, COP29 has too many oil executives playing on the field, which is why Indigenous Peoples are looking at next year's COP30, happening at the heart of the Amazon, to finally sit at the negotiation table and see concrete results.
“Leaders from Brazil, Australia, and the Pacific Islands launched an Indigenous Troika to build strategies and arrive at COP30 speaking from a position of climate authorities.
“The world is looking forward to Belém as a true Indigenous COP, and it should start with an Indigenous co-presidency.”
Talking Points
A powerful storm battered Washington state, U.S., knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of people while disrupting road travel and causing at least two deaths and two injuries. The first "atmospheric river" storm of the season has moved to California and is set to bring extreme rainfall by the end of the week, according to forecasters.
Spain floods: Spain's Deputy Prime Minister Teresa Ribera, who is also environment and energy minister, said long-delayed additional flood defenses in Valencia region would likely not have prevented the worst flood-related disaster in Spain's history as they had been designed for smaller catastrophes.
Lebanon's health ministry said more than 2,500 displaced cancer patients have been forced to find new treatment centers, as at least eight hospitals in southern Lebanon and Beirut's southern suburbs were out of action due to Israeli shelling. Click here for the full Reuters article.
Workers’ rights: Volkswagen management and worker representatives begin a third round of wage negotiations, with just ten days left to find a solution before unions have threatened strikes across German sites. The talks are over wages for 120,000 of Volkswagen's roughly 300,000 staff in Germany.
ESG Spotlight
Today’s spotlight focuses on a Japanese manicurist who has been using Umigomi, or "sea trash," to make nail art since 2021.
Naomi Arimoto carefully sifts sand for tiny bits of plastic that she can mold into decorative tips to put on the false nails at her salon. She came up with the idea after taking part in community cleanups along the coast.
Today’s Sustainable Switch was edited by Mark Potter
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