COP Delegations

Paris was when we committed - Glasgow is when we act

Chantal Vallis — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 17:47:45 +0000

Paris was when we committed - Glasgow is when we act Chantal Vallis Wed, 12/15/2021 - 12:47

Estimated reading time: 3:30

The first week of COP26 has come to an end. In a single week, we heard world leaders give their statements on future national actions, discussed climate finance as a mechanism for climate change solutions, planned the transition to renewable energy, highlighted youth’s role in climate action on Youth Day and listened to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC’s) leading scientists explain the latest climate science. Representing the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ at COP26 has been surreal; COP26 has been an incredible platform for experts, professionals, and leaders to come together to discuss the global issues surrounding climate change and strategize solutions. However, after each panel discussion, I couldn’t help but notice that most of the panel time was spent discussing the problem, and less time was spent discussing concrete solutions.

Photo courtesy of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

As a science student, I was particularly excited about hearing the IPCC Working Group 1 discuss the newest findings in the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6). Leading IPCC scientists summarized the report, pointed out key insights regarding the current state of the climate and possible climate futures, and discussed uncertainties in knowledge. For instance, scientists reconfirmed that global temperatures will exceed 1.5-2 °C unless deep reductions in CO2 occur. This was probably my favourite event to attend as I truly believe climate science is one of the strongest tools we have for understanding the complexities of climate change. The evidence that the IPCC authors provided were concrete and grounded in objectivity. This made for a productive conversation because authors were able to show us where, when and what was happening around the world in relation to climate change, with a level of quantified uncertainty.

I also had the chance to listen to some presentations at the World Health Organization (WHO) Health Pavilion, where conversations on climate change and health were held. With a background in epidemiology/medical science, I have always been interested in the intersection between the environment, humans, and animals. I heard several scientists and doctors speak on topics such as infectious disease increases with climate change, air pollution and health, and plant-based diets as a key solution to climate change and health issues. Health risks in Canada are rapidly increasing due to climate change; whether it be harmful air pollution after wildfires or increases in Lyme disease transmission. Speakers at the WHO Health Pavilion presented some key solutions that are easily transferable to the Canadian health system such as development of early warning systems, inclusion of health risks in environmental policies, and fossil fuel reductions.

On Youth Day, young activists took the streets to vocalize their demand for climate action. At the conference, I heard several youth leaders speak about their climate-related experiences and projects. However, almost all young leaders felt left out of the climate action decision making process and demanded a seat at the table. Lowering the voting age in some countries or securing free education were other interesting proposals to support youth action.

At the start of this post, I mentioned how most of the time at COP26 was spent discussing the problem and not the solution. Perhaps it is because the real solutions arise after the COP when everyone returns home to their countries with new knowledge. From world leaders to Indigenous youth leaders, everyone has a role to play in solving this problem. World leaders and governments must fulfill the promises made in Paris in 2015. Universities, like the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ, must support the next generation of climate finance experts and scientists. Industry and youth must create innovative solutions, renewable energies, and clean technologies. Indigenous people must continue to guide environmental governance. And we must all nurture and care for the one, beautiful planet we have.

Misha Patel is a Masters of Climate Change student at the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ and attended the 26th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, U.K. during fall 2021. This is her final reflection from participating as a student delegate at the conference.

The world is looking at you

Chantal Vallis — Wed, 08 Dec 2021 14:11:13 +0000

The world is looking at you Chantal Vallis Wed, 12/08/2021 - 09:11

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

“The world is looking at you,” said Sir David Attenborough while addressing the 26th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) delegates at the World Leaders Summit; a quote that summed up the first few days of the UN Climate Change Conference. This year, it was clearer than ever that climate change was the most critical issue facing the entire planet and the pressures were high for world leaders.

Photo courtesy of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

So far, I had the opportunity to watch the World Leaders Summit, Indigenous Consultations, Climate Finance Day conversations and other side events. I heard country leaders speak about their country’s action plans and announce some of the most ambitious and unprecedented targets to date. For instance, more than 100 nations representing more than 85% of the world’s forests, including Canada, committed to end or reverse deforestation by 2030. Canada highlighted the importance of carbon pricing to support a transition to renewable energy and announced an investment into nature-based solutions. Different from previous years, world leaders announced actions with an increasing sense of urgency and mentioned that time was running out to prevent unlivable future conditions. These increasingly unfavourable conditions are already a reality for many developing countries and islands such as Barbados and Samoa. This inequity was a reoccurring theme in conversations, with developed nations focusing heavily on economic solutions to maintain prosperity while developing nations prepare to protect themselves against the effects of the climate crisis to which they contributed very little.

Climate finance, a potential mechanism to solve the inequity, was a large focus of COP26 and a subject I am interested in. Leaders strategized to raise the $100 billion needed to empower developing nations and broaden mobilization and alignment of financial flows for enabling climate action. This included conversations surrounding financial quantification of climate risks, financially rewarding countries that are successful in adaptation and mitigation, creating a pipeline to flow finances towards developing nations and the increasing demand for climate finance majors. For the first time, the private sector played an immense role in climate action with companies and banks coming together with the public sector to steer change.

My favourite part of the first few days was hearing and learning from Indigenous people around the world who consider the natural environment as a part of their identity. They shared their first-hand experiences of the changing climate. Some spoke about animals that were part of their forests for thousands of years disappearing suddenly due to climate-related impacts. Communities from Kenya shared how they are experiencing climate-related starvation due to failed rainy seasons. Despite the circumstances, Indigenous leaders spoke about how they never give up and will give back to the planet unconditionally because if we take care of it, it will take care of us. This philosophy offered hope, inspired me greatly and is something we can all learn from.

Overall, I have learned so much in the first few days of COP26. As the conference continues, I hope to learn more about the physical sciences, health and climate change, and energy transitions. I feel extremely motivated to create positive change and empower others to do the same. As Mia Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados, put so nicely, “if our existence is to mean anything, then we must act in the interest of all people,” and that is what I intend to do as a youth leader.

Misha Patel is a Masters of Climate Change student at the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ and attended the 26th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, U.K. during fall 2021. This is her reflection from participating as a student delegate during the first week of talks.

Will we see more action during COP26?

Chantal Vallis — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 18:53:57 +0000

Will we see more action during COP26? Chantal Vallis Tue, 12/07/2021 - 13:53

Photo courtesy of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

First impressions

In almost every virtual forum at COP26 that I have had the honour of attending, there has been a high level of aspiration for what can be achieved at the conference accompanied by overwhelming expressions of urgency for climate mitigation and adaptation efforts. Interestingly, COP26 has been touted as the COP of ‘delivery’, a global opportunity to move beyond reiterating statements of intent and increasingly more about assuming the work. Will we see remote targets translated into immediate action? Will goal setting around topics such as emissions targets, the phasing out of coal or climate finance persist through negotiations?

Though there is much still to be seen, I think COP26 is off to a great start. In the few days since the commencement of the conference, I have observed the sharing of crucial research and have had the opportunity to participate in meaningful side sessions that have fostered key criticisms. I have observed an incredible amount of collaboration and coordination, and the critical engagement of non-government actors. In addition to these successes are an increase in bilateral intentions and unilateral commitments from officials. I am hopeful that as the conference progresses, we will see multilateralism continue to move beyond strategy and into actions as negotiations continue.

One area of hope in this regard is the phasing out of coal, the leading source of fossil fuel emissions. Ahead of Energy Day on November 4, an international agreement has been reached to accelerate the end of coal domestically in Canada and halt the financing of fossil fuels abroad. Complementary to this are deals focused on helping countries financially to transition away from reliance on fossil fuels towards clean energy, such as South Africa’s deal with countries like France, Germany, the E.U., the U.S., and the U.K. Though this shows momentum towards global reduction of fossil fuels, it is hard not to think that the conversation of coal ought to be behind us, and we should have moved on to the reduction in reliance on oil and gas.

Doubts arise

We knew leading up to COP26 that there is an urgent need for more ambitious climate action to meet the Paris Agreement commitments in terms of both pace and scale. This is particularly true if there is to be any hope of keeping global warming from rising above the 1.5-2 degrees Celsius, pre-industrial levels by the end of the century. Limiting temperature increase to 1.5 degrees by 2100 was the core objective of the Glasgow Climate Pact. Did COP26 and the Pact go far enough to achieve this?

As the conference progressed and I participated in more plenary sessions and meaningful dialogue with fellow delegates, I could not help but note the mounting anxiety growing inside of me. But, I wasn’t the only one. Throughout conversations I had, particularly with younger representatives, a theme of doubt became apparent. Many of us were worried that states were making increasingly ambiguous commitments on an expedited glide path that would not be realized. Our concern about the integrity of these commitments was compounded by the reality that this gap in credibility already exists. States and organizations are currently not living up to their commitments under their nationally determined contributions. Now coming out of COP26, where there is a greater sense of urgency with heightened commitments, I think there is reasonable doubt that we will not fulfill these ambitious commitments and adjust the warming glide path we are on.

Was there any progress?

I believe that COP26 made progress in some areas, including attempting to address this credibility gap concern. The Pact captured this by incorporating rules around ‘transparency,’ requiring states to report emissions and progress every two years. Though an essential step in the right direction, it is still to be seen whether this inclusion goes far enough to hold states accountable, both in terms of reporting and emissions management. Additionally, the conference and the Pact asks states to reconsider and improve their 2030 climate plans before 2023 instead of the initial 2025 deadline. However, whether states will come forward earlier with more demanding commitments is far from guaranteed and could widen the credibility gap. This is especially true as more analyses of state pledges around cutting greenhouse gas emissions estimates, based on those submitted, put the world on a trajectory for 2.4 degrees warming from pre-industrial levels by 2100.

Where do we go from here?

Now that the conference has concluded, where do we go from here? For me, one obvious answer is to use this opportunity to establish more consistent and coherent state policies towards climate action; for states to make good on the promises they make. For Canada, this means not only reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40 percent below 2005 levels by 2030, but exploring more supply-side policy initiatives that consider ceasing domestic fossil fuel exploration and extraction; something notably missing from Canada’s commitments throughout the conference.

Sarah is a Ph.D. student in Global Governance, studying Global Environment at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, and attended the 26^th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, U.K. during fall 2021. This is her reflection from participating as a student delegate.