UN
Global Climate Action
16
March
2022 | |
High Level Climate Champions
Newsletter | |
The Power and Freedom of Net
Zero | |
A world
reliant on international oil, gas and coal
markets is a world where geopolitical crises,
extreme weather and infrastructure disruptions
reverberate around the global economy, leading
to price and supply shocks. It’s a world that
continues to fuel bigger risks – from volatile
prices, to the health impacts of pollution, to
the migration driven by drought, flood, food
shortages and war.
Reliance on
clean, flexible, distributed and unlimited
renewable fuels can alleviate these risks,
leading to greater energy independence, wider
access to affordable energy sources, clean air
and faster sustainable development.
The current
geopolitical crisis and instability of Russian
oil and gas imports is alarming, and leading
some to argue they should step up development of
their own oil and gas resources, as a way to
ensure energy security. However, this is not the
best way to respond to the current
crisis.
Instead,
this is a time double down on the global race to
zero emissions and systemic resilience to the
impacts of climate change. It’s the time to pivot
away from a centralized energy system reliant on
a few big suppliers of fossil fuels and power
generators – towards a fair, distributed and
clean system.
This is a
system that’s designed for the local community –
taking advantage of local resources such as
wind, sunshine and hydro, and incorporating
efficiency measures such as home
insulation.
The European
Union, for example, could reduce its imports on
Russian gas by more than one-third within a year
through measures that support the European Green
Deal, energy security and energy
affordability, according to the International Energy
Agency. These
include accelerating the deployment of solar and
wind, maximizing the use of existing
low-emission sources such as nuclear and
renewables, and ramping up energy efficiency in
homes and businesses.
We won’t end
our reliance on fossil fuels overnight, or even
within a couple of years. This transition needs
to occur in a just, planned and orderly way that
benefits local communities and diversifies
economies.
But
developing new oil and gas fields is not a quick
or attractive fix. They would take years to
develop, and even domestic supplies are linked
to international prices. And, as the science
makes clear, there is no room for new fossil
fuels developments on the route to zero
emissions before 2050.
| |
The Race to Zero
Criteria | |
The process
is now underway to strengthen, clarify
and update the criteria for members of the
UN-back Race to Zero. This is an annual
consultation, supported by an expert
peer review group, designed to
continually raise the standard for best
practices around robust targets for net zero
emissions.
The Race to
Zero set its Starting Line Criteria in 2021,
requiring members to pledge, plan, proceed and
publish targets for net zero emissions before
2050.
But climate
action and the impacts of climate change are
rapidly evolving, with the growing body of
climate science, exponential growth of
zero-carbon solutions and lessons learned by
frontrunners.
The Race to
Zero consultation is an independent process led
by experts and practitioners from around the
world - some connected to the campaign, some
not. Through lively discussion, and likely
disagreements, the expert peer review group will
digest suggestions and draft new criteria around
the requirements to pledge, plan, proceed and
publish.
These will be
presented to UN Climate Change High-Level
Champions, Nigel Topping and Mahmoud Mohieldin,
for approval and published in June. They will
take immediate effect for any new partner or
member looking to join the Race to Zero, while
existing partners and members will have a year
to make updates to their work.
| |
Middle East and North Africa Regional
Climate
Week | |
The High-Level Champions are excited to
launch their programme for the first-ever Middle
East and North Africa Regional Climate Week,
taking place in Dubai from 28-31 March. The event
provides a platform for governments, cities,
private sector leaders, financial institutions
and civil society to advance collaborative
climate action in the region through deep
dialogue and engagement.
It also marks the first public appearance
for the Egyptian High-Level Climate Champion for
the COP27 Presidency, Mahmoud Mohieldin,
alongside Nigel Topping, UK High-Level Climate
Champion for the COP26 Presidency. The two will
share their priorities for the year,
kickstarting the five-year plan for the Improved
Marrakech Partnership.
The programme includes the
Regionalization Workshop of the Marrakech
Partnership for Global Climate Action, on 29
March at 2-6pm local time, which will bring
stakeholders together to assess climate change
in the region, explore challenges and
opportunities, and showcase ambitious solutions
within the context of the Race to Resilience and
Race to Zero campaigns.
It also includes a Marrakech Partnership
Implementation Lab on water and strengthening
resilience on 28 March at 4:30-6:30pm local
time. It will look at how recycled water can
play a critical role in supporting climate
resilience and water and food security in the
MENA region.
An information note has recently
been published for all participants. Register now
and join us in
Dubai! | |
Spotlight on Locally Led
Adaptation | | | |
The Resilience Hub at COP26 provided a new,
global platform for people experiencing the
impacts of climate change and working to build
resilience and adaptation around the
world.
Their voices were amplified, and heard,
like at no other COP. But - with climate change
already disrupting and destroying the lives of
billions - it’s not enough to be heard. Their
experiences need to influence leadership
decisions, including at COP negotiations.
The Gobeshona Global Conference,
from 27 March-1 April, will explore how the
experiences and knowledge of those working on
locally led adaptation and resilience can be
elevated at COP27 in Egypt. Bringing together
researchers from around the world, the
conference aims to set out actionable research
that can inform policies and climate action
work.
‘Gobeshona’ means ‘research’ in
Bangladeshi, and the conference is designed to
share knowledge about locally led adaptation and
resilience. This will be the second annual
virtual international Gobeshona conference,
which has been running in Bangladesh since
2014.
The Climate Vulnerable Forum of 55
developing countries, currently chaired by
Bangladesh, is already leading global action on
adaptation and resilience, including through a
joint multi-donor fund it created, writes
Saleem Huq, an Ambassador for the Race to
Zero and Race to
Resilience. | |
- Even the fastest feasible path of emission
reductions would require at least 70-220 Gt of
carbon to be removed by 2050. The Energy
Transitions Commission looks at how to do
this, with a combination of nature-based
solutions such as reforestation, engineered
solutions such as direct air capture, and hybrid
solutions such as bioenergy plus carbon capture
and storage.
- 175 countries have endorsed a historic UN
resolution to end plastic pollution and
agree to an international, legally binding
agreement by the end of 2024. Plastic pollution
soared from 2 million tonnes in 1950 to 348
million tonnes in 2017, according to the UN
Environment Programme. It is expected to double
in capacity by 2040.
- More than 1,000 companies with revenues of
US$4.7 trillion have signed a call on
governments to adopt policies now to reverse
nature loss in this decade. You too can join the
Business for Nature Call to Action by signing
up here.
- China
plans to build 450 GW of solar and wind
power generation in the Gobi and other desert
regions, in an effort to reach 1,200 GW and peak
emissions by 2030.
- Thailand’s biggest-in-the-world floating
hydro-solar power project, which started
operating last October, is the first of 15 the
country intends to build by 2037. It can
generate 145 MW – using sunshine by day and
hydro by night.
- The Climate
Action Accelerator has become an official
partner of the Race to Zero, enabling the
international aid sector to join forces with the
campaign.
- Resilience First and the International
Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure have
launched the Engineering Leadership Group,
a network of engineering firms working to
advance infrastructure sustainability,
resilience and climate action.
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