After a week of heated debates on topics such as loss and damage compensation, decarbonisation, agriculture, and youth, COP27 week 2 kicked off with a day dedicated to water security and gender equality, followed by negotiations on energy, biodiversity, and solutions. While we’re patiently waiting for the final agreement, here’s a recap of the major deals achieved in the second half of COP27.
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Monday, November 14: Water and Gender Day
- Water Resilience in Africa: the COP27 Presidency launched the Action on Water Adaptation and Resilience Initiative (AWARe) to put push for water and adaptation investments for the most vulnerable communities and ecosystems in Africa. The programme, supported by the World Meterological Organization (WMO), will work on decreasing water loss, propose and implement policy methods for adaptation and promote cooperation.
- Water Solutions in Africa: The World Resources Institute and partners launched the African Cities Water Adaptation Fund (ACWA Fund) with the aim of channeling US$5 billion toward urban water resilience solutions in 100 African cities by 2032. The Fund will support local leaders by providing direct access to funding and technological support to implement innovative solutions targeting water issues, including “integrated governance, watershed management, increasing sanitation services, improved stormwater management and wastewater management,” the press release reads.
- Nature Tech Predictions: In a report by Nature4Climate and investment platform Capital for Climate, climate finance experts predict that “nature tech” will grow to $6 billion by 2030 as pressure for new climate and nature solutions mounts. Nature tech solutions include drones planting trees and AI software managing rainforests as well as investment platforms trading carbon credits.
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- Power of Women: “Women and girls are essential, effective and powerful leaders to address the climate crisis. But they remain largely undervalued and underestimated with limited access to training extension services and the technology necessary for effective adaptation to the impacts of climate change,” UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed told an event focused on women in Africa.
- Women in Pakistan – Call for Help: The international not-for-profit organisation WaterAid reported on the inhumane conditions of women and girls in Pakistan. Because of the lack of clean water, sanitation, and hygiene, women in flood zones are suffering from urinary tract infections and reproductive complications. To donate to WaterAid Pakistan, visit this website.
Tuesday, November 15: Energy and ACE
- WWF Report: The World Wildlife Fund released a report uncovering nature’s role in climate action. The latest science confirms that nature acts as our secret ally in the fight against climate change, contributing to slow global warming and protecting humanity from the devastating impacts of extreme weather and other climate change-related events.
- EU’s New Emission Target: The European Union announced a more ambitious target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 57% on 1990 levels by 2030. The bloc has recently passed a legislation to phase out fossil fuel cars by 2035. EU’s climate policy chief Frans Timmermans claimed that the EU was “saving more energy, investing more in renewables than ever before.”
- Turkey Submits new NDC: Turkey’s new climate plan includes a pledge to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 41% in 2030, compared with its business-as-usual scenario. However, the newly proposed cut still means the nation’s carbon footprint will increase by 32% at the end of the decade, with emissions expected to peak in 2038 at the latest. What’s more, the new plan does not commit to halting new coal projects or phasing out existing power plants.
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Wednesday, November 16: Biodiversity Day
- Nature-based Solutions Partnership: The COP27 Presidency, in collaboration with the IUCN, launched the ENACT partnership, a hub for Party and non-state actors working on nature-based solutions (NBS) to strenghten collaboration as well as facilitate and accelerate the implementation of NBS commitments. The Partnership is expected to enhance the resilience of 1 billion vulnerable people, “significantly increase” global mitigation and protect, restore, and sustainably manage up to 2.4 billion hectares of ecosystems by the end of the decade.
- Call to Action at COP15 in Montreal: 350 civil society leaders – including scientists, Indigenous Communities, businesses and NGOs – called on world leaders to prioritise the upcoming UN Biodiversity conference in Montreal and deliver an ambitious agreement that reverses nature loss by 2030. In a statement, other climate champions also urged world leaders to secure a strong agreement for nature in Montreal this December that is based on the 1.5 pathway established with the Paris Agreement. “COP15 in Montreal is a once-in-a-decade opportunity to agree a global deal for nature, and we need leaders to show up and deliver,” commented Helena Gualinga (Kichwa), Indigenous Youth Climate Leader, Sarayaku, Ecuador.
- Nature-Positive Roadmap: Members of the Forest Solutions Group (FSG) of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) release Phase I of the Forest Sector Nature-Positive Roadmap, which provides guidance for business action to reverse nature loss and sets science-based nature-related targets.
- Lula’s Speech: Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva joined COP27 on Wednesday. In a speech, he said climate change will have the highest profile in his government. “There is no climate security for the world without a protected Amazon,” he said. “We will do whatever it takes to have zero deforestation and the degradation of our biomes.”
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Thursday, November 17: Solutions Day
- Draft Climate Agreement: The UN published a first draft of the COP27 climate agreement. If you want to read more about it, check out this article.
- WWF Call to Action: The World Wildlife Fund warned world leaders and negotiators of the little time left to rescue COP27. In the conference’s final hours, WWF experts reviewed negotiations on loss and damage, mitigation, adaptation, food systems, and climate finance so far, calling on experts to “intensify” their efforts to deliver breakthrough agreements on these key issues.
- Latin America’s First Youth Climate Council: following Lula’s presidential victory, Brazilian youth announced the creation of South America’s first-ever institutionalised Youth Climate Council. “In 2022, more than 100 young Brazilians, representing all regions and biomes in Brazil, as well as many social movements, companies, NGOs, and the Brazilian diaspora, have convened at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh to set the tone of Brazil’s new environmental agenda,” the Group said in a statement. “Now, more than the survival of climate and nature action, young people are working to guarantee their institutional inclusion in the climate space through the Youth Climate Council in Brazil.”
- New LEAF Agreements: Six new LEAF agreements with Brazilian states and forest countries were signed on Thrusday. The Lowering Emissions by Accelerating Forest Finance (LEAF) coalition was announced last week. It plans to mobilise US$1.5 billion in finance for tropical forest countries that are committed to protecting their forests, the largest-ever public-private effort to protect tropical forests.
This is part 2 of the COP27-Recap series. Check out ‘COP27 Week 1 Recap’ here.
Featured image by Peter Dejong/AP
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