Among the stumbling blocks for a global climate deal in Paris is a decades-old U.N. view that divides the world into two camps – wealthy countries that bear the financial responsibility for climate change and developing nations that do not.
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On Tuesday the European Union and 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific countries issued a statement demanding a binding agreement with five-yearly reviews to consider more ambitious targets for the world and individual countries.
A major objective of the Paris climate conference should be to “mobilize” or “facilitate the mobilization” of climate finance.
“Two days into the high-level ministerial segment, BASIC countries including India today expressed “disappointment” at the “low” level of support provided by the developed countries to the developing nations in fighting climate change and asserted that it was “imperative” that these countries must” take “visible” lead in cutting emissions. Other developing countries are willing to consider five-yearly reviews.
“I hope the parties will accelerate the speed of their negotiation so that by Friday evening we will have a universal and robust climate change agreement”, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in Paris.
“The situation demands, and this moment demands, that we do not leave Paris without an ambitious, inclusive, and durable global climate agreement”, he said. There has been a strong push for language in the negotiating text that refers to the $100 billion in 2020 as the “floor”, with higher climate financing mobilized in the years after 2020 “ramping up”.
Kerry says the USA will increase the amount of money it provides for climate adaption grants to $860 million from $430 million by 2020. It was co-ordinated by the Environmental Justice Network, a local coalition of environmental and climate change activists and campaigners who worked steadily over the past weeks to get Durban’s voice on climate change heard.
Climate expert Rosa Perez of the Manila Observatory, who is part of the Philippine delegation, explained that keeping the global temperature rise to 1.5 C entails immediate mitigation action, rapid upscaling of mitigation technologies available and a rapid shift to renewable energy sources. Some 65 CEOs with a total market capitalization of US$1.9 trillion across 20 sectors have integrated carbon pricing into corporate long-term strategies and investment decisions.
“Congress is not behind him and also he’s also promising billions of Americans tax dollars to fulfill these commitments around the world, he can’t make those commitments without the support of Congress”, Capito added. “Monsoon rainfall could be considerably affected”. The goal is to limit global warming to under two degrees Celsius from pre-Industrial Revolution levels.
The Manila-Paris Declaration officially launched by President Benigno Aquino III last week has drawn support from more than 100 countries.
Another important issue for the Philippines is the inclusion of the concept on human rights in the preamble.
He also emphasized that neither of the temperature targets-1.5 degrees or 2 degrees-were chosen for their safety. Even the United States has called for recognition of the goal in some form.
Kerry has made combatting climate change a priority project since he became secretary of state, and sounded familiar themes.
“We are the face of vulnerability. In the end, its business – the choices you make and the products you make that will make the difference”.
Janet Redman, with the Institute for Policy Studies, said “I won’t be surprised if the Paris deal does not deliver what we need”.
“We have never been this close to a climate change agreement”, said Maldives Environment Minister Thoriq Ibrahim, chairman of an alliance of island nations.
The final agreement really comes down to a few key finance elements.
He said that the Sultanate will continue to shoulder its responsibilities in this regard on account of its belief in the principle of a common future and continue to work with the global community.
It urged that every step of the negotiations be shared with the civil society and the public.
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Other provinces have also put forward carbon dioxide emissions reduction plans.
