The aftermath of COP-27

The UN climate summit (COP27) held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt concluded on November 20, 2022. The negotiations were long and hard, and the outcomes were not as good as we had hoped. Hope and frustration are always close together when it comes to climate negotiations, and this COP was no different. Member States were not able to get a fossil fuel phase-out into the text, and they didn't push further on a just transition to a green and sustainable future. However, they reached a historic decision to launch a 'loss and damage fund' for countries acutely impacted by climate change.


"Loss and damage"refers to the most severe impacts of extreme weather on the physical and social infrastructure of poor countries, and the financial assistance needed to rescue and rebuild them. Developing countries are at the frontlines of the climate crisis, facing the loss of life and serious economic damages despite their historically low greenhouse gas emissions.It was the most contentious issue at the conference, and has been a long-running demand by developing countries since 1992. For nearly two weeks, the EU and the US refused demands from poor countries for a new fund to address loss and damage, arguing that existing funds should be redirected for the purpose.
But, finally in a historic breakthrough, wealthy nations have finally agreed to create a fund to aid vulnerable countries that are reeling from devastating climate damages.

Developing countries made strong and repeated appeals for the establishment of a loss and damage fund, to compensate the countries that are the most vulnerable to climate disasters, yet who have contributed little to the climate crisis. This loss and damage fund will be a lifeline for poor families whose houses are destroyed, farmers whose fields are ruined, and islanders forced from their ancestral homes. This positive outcome from COP27 is an important step toward rebuilding trust with vulnerable countries. It is also encouraging that countries agreed to operationalize the Santiago Network on Loss and Damage, which will provide much-needed technical assistance to developing countries.  

At the same time, developing countries are leaving Egypt without clear assurances about how the loss and damage fund will be overseen. In the coming year, the Transitional Committee must set strong guidelines for this new fund and work swiftly to address the urgent needs and concerns of vulnerable countries. Progress on other topics of the UN climate negotiations was a mixed bag. Negotiators agreed to produce a report on progress towards doubling adaptation finance by 2025, but the funding commitments made in Sharm El-Sheikh did not boost confidence that this goal will be reached. Important decisions on setting a global goal for adapting to climate impacts were kicked down the road.

Negotiators also called for countries to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy, but the talks concluded without new, strong language on curbing greenhouse gas emissions or giving developing countries confidence that funding for adaptation is ramping up fast enough to double by 2025. While progress on loss and damage was encouraging, it is disappointing that the decision mostly copied and pasted language from last year's Glasgow summit about curbing emissions, rather than taking any significant new steps. New calls to accelerate deployment of renewable energy were very welcome. But it is mindboggling that countries did not muster the courage to call for phasing down fossil fuels, which are the biggest driver of climate change.  


Governments attending the meeting also agreed on a package of decisions reaffirming their commitment to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. However, the deal was far from perfect, with several key elements flawed or lacking. Some countries said the commitments on limiting temperatures to 1.5C represented no progress on the Cop26 conference in Glasgow last year, and the language on phasing out fossil fuels was weak.The national plans that countries had submitted on cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 were not enough to meet the vital goal of limiting global temperature rises to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, in line with scientific advice.
High on the agenda at COP27 was climate change adaptation, which refers to adjusting our behavior and building improved infrastructure to better cope with changing weather patterns. UN Secretary-General Ant�nio Guterres unveiled his plans to ensure everyone on the planet is protected by early warning systems within the next five years. "Vulnerable communities in climate hotspots are being blindsided by cascading climate disasters without any means of prior alert," he explained. To combat this, Guterres unveiled a plan which calls for new targeted investments of $3.1 billion between 2023 and 2027 to provide early warning systems for everyone on the planet.

Countries around the world are failing to live up to their commitments to fight climate change. Only 26 of 193 countries that agreed to step up their climate action last year have followed through with more ambitious plans.Researches show that the world is collectively lagging on climate action across every sector. Greenhouse gas emissions keep growing. Global temperatures keep rising. And our planet is fast approaching tipping points that will make climate chaos irreversible.

We are on a highway to climate hell with our foot on the accelerator. The only way to avoid even more severe climate impacts and keep 1.5� C alive is if we rapidly slash emissions this decade. There is reason for hope after governments came together to protect the more than 3.3 billion people living in areas highly vulnerable to climate change.  

Time is running short, but a livable planet for people and nature is still within our grasp if leaders take bolder action in this decisive decade. As per the latest UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment report, a mix of mitigation and adaptation options implemented in a participatory and integrated manner can enable rapid, systemic transitions - in urban and rural areas- that are necessary elements of an accelerated transition consistent with limiting warming to 1.5�C.
The writer is urban planner; climate change &public health researcher