|
Climate Change is an existential threat to the Caribbean #1point5toStayAlive is a Panos Caribbean initiative to help make the Caribbean's case for 1.5°C. Since 2009, Small Island Developing States and many others have been calling for limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels to prevent the worst of climate change impacts. The inclusion of a 1.5°C temperature limit in the 2015 Paris Agreement was a major victory for vulnerable countries. |
#1point5toStayAlive Frontpage News
Panos Caribbean: "Media Briefing on the United Nations Climate Talks 2022"
14 DECEMBER 2022
Climate change, with its many risks and threats, is a clear and present danger to countries the world over, but in particular Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and others from the global South.
Their vulnerability can be seen in their small size and, in many instances, struggling economies, together with their geographical locations that put them in the path of natural disasters. These factors make it essential that sustained, scaled-up actions be taken to halt the warming of the planet and the associated impacts.
→ READ MORE ON PANOS CARIBBEAN'S WEBSITE
- Category: Voices of the 1.5°C Allies
Earth Journalism Network: "Dale Elliot's COP27 In-Depth Report Series"
A series of 7 in-depth video reports from different angles about the Caribbean's importance and participation in COP27.
Dale Elliott is the reporter, writer, and producer. He owns and operates the Independent Film Company in Saint Lucia and served as a special reporter for the Earth Journalism Network during COP27.
- Category: 1.5°C Press
PANOS CARIBBEAN: "CARICOM Players Wanted More From COP27 Climate Talks"
Pictured: attendees at CARICOM Pavilion event - COP27
24 NOVEMBER 2022
PETRE WILLIAMS-RAYNOR/FELLOWSHIP
While breathing a sigh of relief following the decision on financing for loss and damage coming out of the recent United Nations Climate Conference, Caribbean SIDS have reservations over the overall package of decisions from the international negotiations (COP27) that concluded in Egypt on November 18.
Not the least of these is the seemingly insignificant strides made to ramp up ambition to cut emissions that fuel the warming of the planet and the associated impacts – from extreme weather events, such as hurricanes, to threats to food and water security, as well as the risks to public health.
“While the establishment of the loss and damage fund is a big win for SIDS, representing 30 years of effort and struggle, there were many disappointments for SIDS in Egypt, particularly as it relates to keeping 1.5 alive,” noted Colin Young, Executive Director of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Climate Change Centre who was at the negotiations, which began on November 6 and ended on November 18.
- Category: Voices of the 1.5°C Allies
PANOS CARIBBEAN: "Mission Accomplished! CARICOM Stakeholders Welcome Loss & Damage Win From Climate Summit"
Pictured: participants at the UN Climate talks mill around at the CARICOM Pavilion - COP27
23 NOVEMBER 2022
PETRE WILLIAMS-RAYNOR/FELLOWSHIP
Stakeholders from Caribbean small island developing states (SIDS) have welcomed the decision to establish a loss and damage response fund from the recently concluded United Nations Climate Conference (COP27) in Egypt.
“We have literally exhausted all of our efforts … to bring home the climate action commitments our vulnerable people desperately need,” said the Hon. Minister Molwyn Joseph of Antigua and Barbuda, chair of the Alliance of Small Island Developing States (AOSIS), in a statement issued Sunday (November 20).
“Our Ministers and negotiators have endured sleepless nights and endless days in an intense series of negotiations, determined to secure the establishment of a loss and damage response fund, keep 1.5 alive, and advance ambition on critical mitigation and adaptation plans,” he added.
- Category: Voices of the 1.5°C Allies
CARICOM Secretary-General at Climate Analytics Caribbean #COP27 Event
22 NOVEMBER 2022
EVENT TOOK PLACE ON 15 NOVEMBER, IN SHARM EL SHEIK, EGYPT.
- Category: Voices of the 1.5°C Allies
CLIMATE HOME NEWS: "What was decided at COP27 climate talks in Sharm el-Sheikh?"
21 NOVEMBER 2022
The biggest breakthrough came on support for climate victims. Developing countries got the loss and damage fund they fought for – on the proviso that the burden of paying into it does not all fall on rich governments. Who pays and who benefits is a battle for Cop28.
There was little to stop polluters causing more damage, though. A proposal to phase out all fossil fuels, not just the coal power targeted at last year’s summit, went nowhere. The Egyptian presidency openly struck gas deals on the sidelines.
→ MORE ON CLIMATE HOME NEWS WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
RENEW ECONOMY: "The good, the bad, and the ugly – a leave pass for fossil fuels at compromised COP27"
21 NOVEMBER 2022
The one major area of progress was the creation of a loss and damage fund to compensate the ‘particularly vulnerable developing countries’ from climate impacts. But at the end of the day, this addresses the symptom without putting further attention to the cause.
→ READ MORE ON RENEW ECONOMY'S WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
Guardian: "Analysis: The 1.5C climate goal died at COP27 – but hope must not"
20 NOVEMBER 2022
The 1.5C target, beyond which the most disastrous climate impacts lie, is not yet physically impossible to meet. To achieve that, global carbon emissions must be reduced by 50% by 2030, yet record levels of pollution are still being pumped into the atmosphere.
→ READ MORE ON THE GUARDIAN'S WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
AOSIS Chair COP27 Statement: “A mission 30 years in the making, accomplished”
Historic loss and damage response fund to assist and support developing countries is finally established at UN climate summit
COP27, Egypt, 19th November, 2022
STATEMENT FROM AOSIS CHAIR, THE HONOURABLE MINISTER MOLWYN JOSEPH, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
AOSIS promised the world we would not leave Sharm El Sheikh without achieving the establishment of a loss and damage response fund. A mission thirty years in the making has been accomplished.
We have literally exhausted all of our efforts here at COP27 to bring home the climate action commitments our vulnerable people desperately need. Our Ministers and negotiators have endured sleepless nights and endless days in an intense series of negotiations, determined to secure the establishment of a loss and damage response fund, keep 1.5 alive, and advance ambition on critical mitigation and adaptation plans. But after the pain comes the progress.
Today, the international community has restored global faith in this critical process that is dedicated to ensuring no one is left behind. The agreements made at COP27 are a win for our entire world. We have shown those who have felt neglected that we hear you, we see you, and we are giving you the respect and care you deserve. Now we must solidify our ties across territories. We must work even harder to hold firm to the 1.5C warming limit, to operationalize the loss and damage fund, and continue to create a world that is safe, fair, and equitable for all.
- - -
END
About AOSIS:
Since 1990, AOSIS has represented the interests of the 39 small island and low-lying coastal developing states in international climate change, sustainable development negotiations and processes. As a voice for the vulnerable, its mandate is more than amplifying marginalised voices as it also advocates for these countries’ interests. In terms of size, AOSIS closely resembles the countries it represents on the global stage, but often punches far above its weight, negotiating historic global commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions, among other achievements.
____________________________
Media Contact:
Bianca Beddoe | Communications Advisor
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
→ AOSIS STATEMENT IN PDF FORMAT
- Category: Voices of the 1.5°C Allies
NEW YORK TIMES: "In a Reversal, the U.S. Won’t Block Climate Compensation for Poor Nations"
19 NOVEMBER 2022
The United States is “working to sign on to a deal,” according to a Biden administration official who asked not to be identified because negotiations were ongoing. The change means the U.S. will no longer block a fund that has long been sought by poor nations overwhelmed by floods, heat and drought made more destructive by climate change.
- Category: 1.5°C Press
ENERGY MONITOR: "Opinion: Why climate action will fail without more women at the table"
14 NOVEMBER 2022
Diversity is central to good decision-making. Yet the family photograph of heads of state and government broadcast to the world on the first day on COP27 last week included 110 men and seven women.
→ MORE ON ENERGY MONITOR WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
T&T GUARDIAN: "Backlog of undecided issues forces COP27 extension"
19 NOVEMBER 2022
KALAIN HOSEIN
A successful COP is one where everyone leaves unhappy—but what happens when the COP nears failure?
With misaligned priorities of developed and developing countries, many of these international climate conferences rarely produce the outcomes small island states like Trinidad and Tobago desperately need to fight the climate crisis. Instead, such activities usually produce watered-down, compromised climate policy and financing facilities developed with politically charged statements that do not always translate into action.
→ MORE ON THE T&T GUARDIAN WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
Statement by Nakeeyat Dramani Sam, CVF Thematic Ambassador for Youth, on behalf of the Ghana CVF Presidency at the Informal Stocktaking Plenary at COP27
18 NOVEMBER 2022
Some communities have been paying a heavy price since our planet was lit on fire by some of its people. It puts a simple question to these fire-starters: When can you pay us back? Payment is overdue.
- Category: Voices of the 1.5°C Allies
PR. JEM BENDELL'S BLOG: "Capitalism Versus Climate Justice – thoughts on my first and last experience of climate COP"
18 NOVEMBER 2022
Dr. Jem Bendell is Professor of Sustainability Leadership and Founder of the Initiative for Leadership and Sustainability (IFLAS) at the University of Cumbria (working part-time) as well as Founder of the Deep Adaptation Forum and the co-Founder of the International Scholars’ Warning on Societal Disruption and Collapse.
At times there were some glimmers of reality and sanity in the conference hall. The Colombian President Gustavo Petro gave a speech where he made it very clear we can’t tackle climate separately from the exploitative and extractive global systems that serve the rich. It was a sentiment stated in less eloquent terms by Venezuela’s President Maduro. Many were surprised to see President Emmanuel Macron suddenly appear friendly with him. Could he be interested in his views on capitalism and the climate? Or perhaps he was just wanting new sources of fossil fuels as the European energy crisis arrive at that awkward moment we call winter. Despite Petro’s speech, which had the additional benefit of upsetting the journalists at Breitbart, it’s clear that nothing in the UNFCCC processes will ever tackle the economic drivers of humanity’s self-destruction.
→ MORE ON UNIVERSITY OF CUMBRIA PR. JEM BENDELL'S BLOG
- Category: 1.5°C Press
AOSIS CHAIR SIR MOLWYN JOSEPH, AT COP27
18 NOVEMBER 2022
The missing demographic. The children yet unborn. What would they say? An impassioned appeal from Sir Molwyn Joseph yesterday continues to reverberate as AOSIS prepares to take this fight to the wire. We are not giving up! #WeWantLDFinance #IslandsMatter
- Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS)
- Category: Voices of the 1.5°C Allies
GUARDIAN: "EU reversal of stance on loss and damage turns tables on China at COP27"
18 NOVEMBER 2022
Late on Thursday night in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, the Cop27 UN climate talks seemed stuck in an irretrievable logjam. Rich and poor countries had reached deadlock, a “breakdown between north and south”, according to the UN secretary general, António Guterres.
By Friday morning, the talks had been upended and the battleground dramatically redrawn, in a way it has not been in 30 years of these annual talks. At stake is the question of whether some of the world’s leading economies – countries such as China, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf petrostates, Russia and countries with high per capita income such as South Korea and Singapore – should start contributing for the first time to help the poorest and most vulnerable countries with the impacts of climate disaster.
→ MORE ON THE GUARDIAN'S WEBSITE
- - -
"COP27: EU agrees to loss and damage fund to help poor countries amid climate disasters"
A breakthrough looked possible in the deadlocked global climate talks on Friday as the European Union made a dramatic intervention to agree to key developing world demands on financial help for poor countries.
In the early hours of Friday at the Cop27 UN climate summit in Egypt, the European Commission vice-president, Frans Timmermans, launched a proposal on behalf of the EU that would see it agree to establishing a loss and damage fund.
→ MORE ON THE GUARDIAN'S WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
St. Lucia Times: "$6.2 Million Saint Lucia Flood Damage Estimate Expected To Increase"
17 NOVEMBER 2022
The estimated damage caused by the November 6 floods in Saint Lucia is expected to increase beyond the current ECD$6.2 million.
“To date, for this Level II Disaster, we have damage and loss estimates of ECD$6.2 million. This figure is expected to increase as teams continue to assess businesses, infrastructure, and other affected households,” Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre wrote Wednesday on Facebook.
→ MORE ON SAINT LUCIA TIMES WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
Guardian: "UN chief warns of ‘breakdown in trust’ with no deal in sight at COP27"
17 NOVEMBER 2022
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, has flown to the attempted rescue of troubled climate talks in Egypt, warning of a “breakdown in trust” between rich and poor governments that could scupper hopes of a deal.
There are four key concerns: countries’ plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in line with limiting global heating to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels; how to help poor countries adapt to the effects of the climate crisis; finance for poor countries to cut emissions and adapt to extreme weather; and loss and damage, which covers ways of helping countries afflicted by the worst ravages of climate disaster.
→ MORE ON THE GUARDIAN'S WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
GLEANER: "‘Stop playing games!’ SIDS negotiators frustrated with climate negotiations on loss and damage"
17 NOVEMBER 2022
Petre Williams-Raynor
With mere days to go before the latest United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference (COP27) is history, battle-weary negotiators from the Caribbean and other small island developing states (SIDS) have noted their frustration with the slow progress on financial arrangements for loss and damage.
→ MORE ON THE JAMAICA GLEANER WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
Global Voices: "‘Global South’ countries declare COP27 a case of climate inaction"
17 NOVEMBER 2022
Dizzanne Billy
With just one day left in the global conference, there still has not been the establishment of an Loss & Damage funding facility. Instead, we’ve been witnessing an obvious tiptoeing around this agenda item by developed countries.
→ READ MORE ON GLOBAL VOICES WEBSITE
- Category: 1.5°C Press
