High Level Climate Champions
Newsletter
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Climate Week NYC: Getting it Done |
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The message of this year’s Climate Week in New York City was clear - Get it done.
In this decisive decade for humanity, urgent climate action is non-negotiable. We must halve emissions by 2030, reverse biodiversity loss and enhance resilience for the millions already experiencing the devastating impacts of inaction.
As Simon Stiell, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary said during this year’s United Nations General Assembly, “Every single leader arrives from a country affected by climate impacts. We know it’s time to change course. Let’s stop the backsliding, regain momentum on climate change and get moving on the massive transformation that must happen this decade.”
Against a backdrop of multiple interconnected crises around the world, this movement must include a rapid acceleration of adaptation action and resilience to prepare us for the future impacts we know are coming.
Some non-State actors (NSAs) such as communities, cities and companies are stepping up to deliver economic, social and environmental benefits. But in order for these, often disparate actions to have meaningful impact, a set of milestones is needed to help direct these solutions into tangible outcomes by 2030.
The Breakthroughs outline what key NSAs must do and by when, to reach the Race to Resilience’s global goal of making 4 billion vulnerable people more resilient by 2030.
Whilst action by NSAs is vital to a net zero future, so too is an increase in ambition from states.
At COP 26, 45 countries committed to make clean technologies the most affordable, accessible and attractive option in each major greenhouse gas emitting sector by 2030 under the Breakthrough Agenda.
It provides an assessment of progress towards each Breakthrough goal and a framework for tracking progress in the future.
Its findings were presented and discussed at the Global Clean Energy Action Forum and the 13th Clean Energy Ministerial held in Pittsburgh, United States where leaders across all sectors were urged to engage in far greater international cooperation.
As IEA Executive Director, Fatih Birol said, “Without this collaboration, the transition to net zero emissions will be much more challenging and could be delayed by decades.”
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Nature Risk Is Investment Risk |
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Nature is the planet’s greatest asset. Not just for its beauty and awe-inspiring wonder but the fact it’s integral to our survival.
Nature is also fundamental to achieving net zero emissions. Without ending net deforestation and transforming the agriculture, food and land-use sectors by 2030, this won’t be possible.
The health of ecosystems on which we and all other species depend is deteriorating more rapidly than ever. This decline is eroding the very foundations of our livelihoods, health, food security and economies.
The report finds these companies could lose up to a quarter of their value by 2030, with permanent sector-wide losses equivalent to the 2008 financial crash.
Ignoring these alarm bells makes little business sense.
According to the same report, a US$4.5 trillion opportunity awaits companies willing to support the sector’s transition to a net zero future.
This latest analysis reinforces research published by Race to Zero earlier this year which revealed an urgent need for companies in the forest, land and agriculture sectors, to make progress on reducing deforestation. The study found that without much greater action, over 90% of these companies that have committed to net-zero, risk missing their targets.
Progress on this issue was made at COP26. More than 100 global leaders pledged to halt and reverse deforestation and land degradation by the end of the decade. This was underpinned by US$19 billion in public and private funds to invest in protecting and restoring forests.
In addition, more than 30 of the world's biggest financial companies promised to end investment in activities linked to deforestation. The plan also reinforced the important role of indigenous people in protecting their forested lands.
But as with all voluntary action, governments and corporations need to deliver on their commitments from 2021 and act now to eliminate commodity-driven deforestation from their investment and lending portfolios.
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Turning the Tide on Shipping |
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Shipping has been the backbone of global economies for thousands of years and today accounts for 90% of world trade.
It’s also responsible for approximately 2% of global emissions. If it were a country, it would be on a par with the total emissions of Germany.
The challenge to decarbonise shipping is huge. With around 60,000 vessels currently in operation emissions are expected to be 50% higher in 2050 than in 2018.
To reach its goals of full decarbonization by 2050, the industry needs to move and move fast.
There are more than 200 shipping decarbonization pilot projects in the pipeline and progress has been made regarding bunkering and safety guidelines internationally. But now the key requirement is moving from pilots to Scalable Zero Emission Fuels (SZEF) production commitments, investments, and infrastructure developments.
While the report acts as an honest stocktake of progress, these commitments and pledges must be turned into tangible actions and solutions. All eyes are on COP 27.
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Keeping Up With The Champions |
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- Mahmoud Mohieldin delivered a keynote speech at the Global Methane, Climate and Clean Air Forum 2022.
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Mahmoud Mohieldin delivered a video message to the 51st regular session of the Human Rights Council for a panel discussion on the future of the right to work in connection with climate change actions, responses and impacts.
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Nigel Topping spoke at 'The road to COP 27 & COP 28' session hosted by The World Cement Association.
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Nigel Topping out three “rules'' for ensuring a successful transition to a zero-carbon future in an interview with avivainvestors.com: “harness ambition loops”, which means locking in the positive effects of bold climate commitments; set “exponential goals”, like we’ve seen in battery production; and “follow shared pathways” to ensure everyone is taking the required action to reach net zero.
The Champions at United Nations General Assembly and Climate Week NYC
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Speaking at an event to mark the beginning of Climate Week NYC, Mahmoud Mohieldin said,“We must address data, finance and implementation to get the job done. We need equitable access to energy in Africa and elsewhere in a sustainable way. Climate finance is insufficient, inefficient and unfair. We need political will to fix it.”
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Speaking at the United Nations Climate Action: Race to Zero and Resilience Forum, Mahmoud Mohieldin said, “There is a deficiency of trust and a surplus of crisis. But we are here today to provide solutions. We need a truly holistic approach. Sustainability is not only climate action, this reductionist approach is a misleading formula. We need to put this all within the Sustainable Development Goals framework.”
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Mahmoud Mohieldin attended the Africa-Europe Foundation (AEF) Women Leaders Network event at UNGA77 to discuss Climate Adaptation and Climate Finance, and to join AEF’s efforts to reframe and reinforce the Africa-Europe partnership on the global stage.
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Mahmoud Mohieldin spoke at the closing reception of The Climate Pledge Summit during which he provided an overview of COP 27 priorities and recommendations on how businesses and other non-state actors can engage.
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Mahmoud Mohieldin and Nigel Topping attended the Marrakech Partnership Stakeholders Workshop at Climate Week NYC. Participants discussed improving the partnership as well as the implementation and regionalisation of global climate action.
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Mahmoud Mohieldin attended the Green Climate Fund high-level dialogue during Climate Week NYC. The theme was “Reaching scale: Catalysing climate finance”. Leaders spoke about the GCF’s unique role and ability to de-risk climate investments, mobilise private capital at scale and deploy blended finance.
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Mahmoud Mohieldin also attended the following events during UNGA 77 and Climate Week NYC:
- UNGA 77: Private Sector Roundtable. Driving Positive Behavior Change for People and Planet
- Financial and Technological Solutions for Just Transition in Agriculture: A Developing Countries’ Perspective
- Resilience Hub: Collaboration is Key to Building Resilient Cities: An Interactive discussion on Unlocking the Interface between Business and Cities.
- Virtual roundtable on strengthening climate ambition with Barbara Buchner, Global Managing Director of Climate Policy Initiative.
- Bloomberg Emerging and Frontier Forum 2022: Negotiating the Road to Net-Zero
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United Nations General Assembly and Climate Week NYC
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Windfall profits made by fossil fuel companies should be taxed to pay for climate damage, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told the General Assembly. He said polluters should pay for the impact of climate-related events as the question of who funds these losses has long dogged international negotiations.
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African Development Bank Group President Dr. Akinwumi Adesina and speakers at the 2nd ministerial meeting on climate and development questioned the commitment of developed countries to deliver on the promises they made at COP26 in Glasgow and the 2015 Paris Agreement. Adesina told the gathering on the sidelines of this year’s UN General Assembly, “ Africa is suffering, choking, and is in serious financial distress for what it didn’t cause. There must be a greater sense of urgency.”
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Michael Bloomberg, UN Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions and founder of Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies, launched the Bloomberg Countdown to COP 27 – a 45-day long series of initiatives and commitments aimed at delivering on UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ call for urgent climate action leading into this year’s UN Climate Change Conference in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. Designed to turbocharge climate progress from public, private, and civil society actors around the world, Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies will unveil dozens of climate actions through investments, partnerships, and capacity-building and educational efforts during the 45-day Countdown to COP 27.
Other news
- The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) published the Renewable energy and jobs: Annual review 2022 during the Global Clean Energy Action Forum in Pittsburgh. It states "worldwide renewable energy employment reached 12.7 million last year, a jump of 700,000 new jobs in one year despite the lingering effects of COVID-19 and the growing energy crisis". The International Energy Agency (IEA) also provided their first assessment of energy jobs worldwide by region and technology through the World Energy Employment Report. It shows that the number of energy jobs worldwide has recovered from disruptions due to Covid-19, increasing above its pre-pandemic level of over 65 million people, or around 2% of the total labour force. The growth has been driven by hiring in clean energy sectors surpassing the 50% mark for its share of total energy employment, with nearly two-thirds of workers involved in building new projects and manufacturing clean energy technologies.
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The two co-facilitators of the Global Stocktake's technical dialogue published the Summary report and a video of the first meeting (TD1.1) held during SB 56 in June 2022. The report will be presented during an informal virtual consultation on Thursday, 6 October 2022, from 14:00 to 15:30 CEST. An information note by the co-facilitators on arrangements for the second technical dialogue meeting (TD1.2) to be taking place during COP 27 in Sharm El-Sheikh will also be made available on the UNFCCC website by Friday, 7 October and these details will also be outlined during a second informal virtual consultation on Tuesday, 18 October 2022, from 14:00 to 15:30 CEST. In addition, the co-facilitators are encouraging Parties to the Paris Agreement and non-Party Stakeholders wishing to submit inputs to the second dialogue (TD1.2) to accompany the submissions with a one page poster summary on the submission and inputs to a creative space at COP 27 which can consist of performances or art, among other formats before Friday, 14 October.
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The Ellen MacArthur Foundation and WWF announced plans to launch the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, bringing together 85 businesses across the plastics value chain, financial institutions and NGOs, to call for and support the development of an ambitious and effective global treaty to end plastic pollution.
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To further support inclusive participation of youth voices at COP27, the Government of Egypt is offering more than 400 opportunities of subsidized accommodation for youth delegates. Applications need to be received by October 7th.
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UN Climate Change | Global Climate Action | Race to Zero | [email protected] | unfccc.int |
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