According to the Climate Action Reporter, only four countries have submitted acceptable climate pledges: Chile, Costa Rica, the EU, and the UK. Of the other pledges, four rate as average, four poor, and the remainder incomplete. With the current proposals, we will be emitting twice as many GHGs in 2030 than we would were we on target to keep emissions at a 1.5 degree C increase.
CNN Climate reporter Bill Weir submits Reporter's notebook: From the climate front lines to COP26, the gap is wide between talk and reality “We've reached a point where the climate models are so grim, brilliant minds from Harvard to Cambridge are actively working on break-glass-in-case-of-emergency ideas, just in case this COP ends up like the first 25, with an increase in planet-cooking pollution.
“Since the first World Climate Conference in 1979, there have been several international meetings to address global warming. Despite numerous climate pledges, significant policy change has been rare while temperatures have continued to rise.”
So far, not a single promise at COP26 involves shutting down an active oil well or coal mine in this vital decade. Even the greenest, most progressive nations like Denmark won't put an end date on fossil fuel production until mid-century, and
all of the vows include the caveat "net-zero." This is a massive loophole that allows countries to burn as much fossil fuel as they'd like, as long as they remove just as much from the atmosphere. It's a promise based on incredibly expensive technology yet to be proven on a large scale.
Tuesday: Gender Day
The UN has revealed that around the world women are those most at risk to the impacts of climate change – alongside children, they comprise of 80% of those displaced by climate-related disaster. This is considered to be the case due to women making up the majority of the world’s poor, as well as their reliance on small-scale farming for survival. COP26: UK commits £165m to fight gender inequality in the climate crisis
Climate Change and Health
In other news, the WHO reports that climate change is the single biggest threat to global health.
The threats include harm or death from increasingly frequent extreme weather events such as heat waves, storms and floods, as well as the disruption of food systems, the spread of diseases from animal populations, food- and water-borne illnesses, related mental health issues and more.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a light on the intimate and delicate links between humans, animals and our environment," WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a news release. "The same unsustainable choices that are killing our planet are killing people."
Science and Innovation
The UNFCC is involving science in programs to foster increases in ambition and support of the negotiations.
- Futures We Want: We are unveiling six region-led visions developed in collaboration with academics and citizens from across the world which explore the opportunities and benefits of achieving a resilient, net zero future, building a positive case for ambitious climate action.
- Risk: We are promoting climate change risk assessment for heads of government, to support the case for ambitious NDCs that drive policy beyond business as usual, to reduce emissions.
- Health Programme: We are seeking ambitious country commitments to build climate resilient and sustainable health systems, supported by funded, evidence based and innovative action on the ground, and welcoming the call to action from the health community worldwide to recognise and respond to the climate crisis as a health emergency with ambitious and equitable action
WRITE YOUR MESSAGE: Greenpeace Call to Action
Will you make sure the COP president, Alok Sharma, pushes government representatives from around the world to make a firm commitment - in writing - to end fossil fuels and support poorer countries to adapt to the damaging impacts of the climate emergency?
We’ve written an email for you, feel free to edit - but please keep it polite!