Why Climate Diplomacy matters
As the world leaders have come together in Brazil this year for the Climate Summit (COP 30 of UNFCCC), it has invited a stream of protests from Climate activists and environmentalists all over the world. This is to attract global attention towards the urgency of climate-related Disasters and the need to release the Climate Fund at the earliest by the Developed Nations to the developing ones.
So, what is this Climate Fund, and why are the developed and the developing world in two separate pages?
As per the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we need to achieve a temperature reduction of 1.5°C below the pre-industrial level to stop climate change before it reaches its irreversible limit. To achieve this, our planet has a fixed Carbon Budget that shouldn't be exceeded. Unfortunately, 4/5th of this budget has already been utilised (emissions have already taken place), and the argument is regarding who has the right over the remaining 1/5th share of the Carbon emission Budget.
• As the developed nations have been the historical emitters, developing nations are demanding a Loss and Damage Fund for the damage that has already been done.
• The measurement criteria of emissions have also been challenged. While the USA calculates cumulative emissions, developing nations (like India and China) demand the calculation based on per-capita emissions, which are higher in developed nations.
• The developed nations are focusing on Mitigation, while the developing countries (like India and China) claim their right over the remaining carbon budget and want to go for the adaptation approach.
• These developing nations still rely on carbon emissions for their energy and food security, and need to construct climate-resilient infrastructures.
• The most vulnerable among us are the Small Island Developing Nations, which are facing an existential threat despite being the lowest emitters.
As the world leaders are hesitant to pay, the small window that we have to fix this issue is shrinking day by day. Also, nations like the USA have withdrawn from the Paris climate agreement, calling it a 'Green Scam'.
In this scenario, India is pushing hard for the release of $300 billion every year as agreed upon to fight Climate Change. It has also released its own set of Nationally Determined Contributions, which involves increasing its non-fossil capacity, reducing carbon intensity and becoming Net Zero by 2070. India has been the Voice of Global South, advocating for the carbon fund on behalf of all the developing and least developed Nations.
