COP27 Big Takeaway—Loss and Damage Fund! COP27 Final Week Highlights, World Fisheries Day

COP27 TAKEAWAY—LOSS AND DAMAGE FUND FINALLY ESTABLISHED

Last week, The Climate Daily celebrated that fact that Loss and Damages got on the COP27 agenda for the first time in 27 years. Now, negotiators from nearly 200 countries at the COP27 UN climate summit in Egypt took the historic step of agreeing to set up a “loss and damage” fund meant to help vulnerable countries cope with climate disasters and agreed the globe needs to cut greenhouse gas emissions nearly in half by 2030. 

The agreement to help the world’s most vulnerable countries deal with loss and damage represents a breakthrough, however, in what has been a contentious negotiation process.

It marks the first time countries and groups, including longtime holdouts like the United States and the EU, have agreed to establish a fund for nations vulnerable to climate disasters made worse by pollution disproportionately produced by wealthy, industrialized nations.

Negotiators and non-governmental organizations observing the talks praised the deal as a significant achievement, after developing nations and small island countries banded together to amplify pressure.

The creation of the fund also became one of the key demands of activists attending the summit.  On Friday, 10-year-old Ghanian activist Nakeeyat Dramani received a standing ovation in the plenary after calling on the delegates to “have a heart and do the math.”

Details on how the fund would operate remain murky. The text leaves a lot of questions on when it will be finalized and become operational, and how exactly it would be funded. The text also mentions a transitional committee that will help nail down those details, but doesn’t set specific future deadlines.

Why does the decades long-awaited establishment of this fund matter to us? While climate experts celebrated the win, they also noted the uncertainty going forward.  We need to stay vigilant.

DEEPER DIVE: NPR, TRT World, Asia Nikkei

COP 27 FINAL WEEK HIGHLIGHTS

COP27 Highlight: Diverse and marginalized voices are becoming more present. Activists made news at COP27 as they used the conference as an excuse to protest climate inaction around the world. Favianna Rodriguez of The Center for Cultural Power attended COP27, where she and fellow climate leaders met with elected officials from all over the world. During these talks, she “saw how impactful unification can be fighting colonization, calling for reparations, and furthering climate justice,” a representative for the center tells Green Matters in an email.

Climate activists targeted Joe Biden’s and other world leaders’ climate inaction. Vanessa Nakate and other protesters held up signs reading “Show Us the Money” to “welcome” President Biden to the conference, as a way of asking him to deliver money for loss and damage to countries suffering the brunt of climate change-induced damage.

Also, a group of four American climate activists interrupted President Biden’s speech at the conference, and presented a “People vs. Fossil Fuels” banner to the crowd, according to CNN. Though the protesters were mostly silent, they were still removed from the speech and banned from the rest of the conference.

Numerous environmental activists around the world took advantage of the focus on climate issues over the past two weeks, and held various series of climate protests. Many climate protesters held demonstrations in art galleries, throwing different liquids at (glass-protected) paintings and gluing their hands to the gallery walls. Additionally, activists barricaded 13 private jet airports last week, demanding that governments ban private jets.

DEEPER DIVE: Green Matters, Mercury News, WRI

NOVEMBER 21–WORLD FISHERIES DAY

World Fisheries Day, observed annually on November 21st, is an opportunity to reflect on the importance of fisheries around the world and what we—as fishers or consumers—can do to ensure that they stay healthy and productive. The history of World Fisheries Day can be traced back to 1997 when the World Fisheries Consortium Forum was established and given the name WFF (World Fisheries Forum). Within the framework of this forum, several participants from around the world were involved.

About 18 countries signed a global consensus document outlining the standardization of practices. In addition, this has led to sustained action to flag higher development practices and policies to make fishing a lucrative standard and means of trade and commerce. It took 18 years, but finally, the first World Fisheries Day was celebrated on 21st November 2015, marking the inaugural ceremony of the International Fisheries Organization.

World Fisheries Day, celebrated on November 21, is dedicated to highlighting the critical importance of healthy ocean ecosystems and to ensure sustainable stocks of fisheries in the world. Why does WFD matter to us? Seafood and fish are traditional foods for many people around the world. People living, especially in coastal areas and areas near the sea, consume it as one of their staple foods. Therefore, this day helps set future trading goals and milestones and brings together many allies under one roof, not just the fishing department.

The fishing industry suffers from many problems, including the breeding of blue-green algae in the oceans and the seas, oil spills and pollution in marine bodies, invasion of plastics, toxic chemicals in seawater, etc. The survival of the fishing industry has become extremely difficult.  World Fisheries Day is critical to today’s trade, as the industry lacks adequate guidelines on investment issues.