At the Conference of Parties on Friday / Saturday, 200 countries agreed to what is called the “Glasgow Pact” ….. this has language to phase out reliance on fossil fuels and transition to use of renewable energy such as solar and wind power. The Glasgow Pact, does not however, however hold wealthier countries to any specific financial commitments to help poorer countries most affected by climate change.
Here below is the full text of the Pact, from CNN.
Analysts of what this means will be the subject of future posts.
Draft COP decision proposed by the President
The Conference of the Parties,
Noting decisions 1/CMP.16 and 1/CMA.3,
Recognizing the role of multilateralism and the Convention, including its processes and principles, and the importance of international cooperation in addressing climate change and its impacts, in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty,
Acknowledging the devastating impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and the importance of ensuring a sustainable, resilient and inclusive global recovery, showing solidarity particularly with developing country Parties,
Recognizing the important advances made through the UNFCCC multilateral process since 1994, including in the context of the Convention, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement,
Acknowledging that climate change is a common concern of humankind, Parties should, when taking action to address climate change, respect, promote and consider their respective obligations on human rights, the right to health, the rights of indigenous peoples, local communities, migrants, children, persons with disabilities and people in
vulnerable situations and the right to development, as well as gender equality, empowerment of women and intergenerational equity,
Noting the importance of ensuring the integrity of all ecosystems, including in forests, the ocean and the cryosphere, and the protection of biodiversity, recognized by some cultures as Mother Earth, and also noting the importance for some of the concept of ‘climate justice’, when taking action to address climate change,
Expressing appreciation to the Heads of State and Government who participated in the World Leaders Summit in Glasgow and for the increased targets and actions announced and the commitments made to work together and with non-Party stakeholders to accelerate sectoral action by 2030,
Recognizing the important role of indigenous peoples, local communities and civil society, including youth and children, in addressing and responding to climate change, and highlighting the urgent need for multilevel and cooperative action,
Recognizing the interlinked global crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, and the critical role of protecting, conserving and restoring nature and ecosystems in delivering benefits for climate adaptation and mitigation, while ensuring social and environmental safeguards,
I. Science and urgency
1. Recognizes the importance of the best available science for effective climate action and policymaking;
2. Welcomes the contribution of Working Group I to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment Report1 and the recent global and regional reports on the state of the climate from the World Meteorological Organization, and invites the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to present its forthcoming reports to the Conference of the Parties at its twenty-seventh session;
3. Expresses alarm and utmost concern that human activities have caused around 1.1 °C of global warming to date and that impacts are already being felt in every region;
4. Stresses the urgency of enhancing ambition and action in relation to mitigation, adaptation and finance in this critical decade to address gaps between current efforts and pathways in pursuit of the ultimate objective of the Convention and its long-term global goal;
II. Adaptation
5. Notes with serious concern the findings from the contribution of Working Group I to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment Report, including that climate and weather extremes and the adverse impacts on people and nature will continue to increase with every additional increment of rising temperatures;
6. Emphasizes the urgency of scaling up action and support, including finance, capacitybuilding and technology transfer, to enhance adaptive capacity, strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability to climate change in line with the best available science, taking into account the priorities and needs of developing country Parties;
7. Welcomes the national adaptation plans submitted to date, which enhance the understanding and implementation of adaptation actions and priorities;
8. Urges Parties to further integrate adaptation into local, national and regional planning;
9. Invites the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to present to the Conference of the Parties at its twenty-seventh session the findings from the contribution of Working Group II to its Sixth Assessment Report, including those relevant to assessing adaptation needs, and calls upon the research community to further the understanding of global, regional and local impacts of climate change, response options and adaptation needs;
III. Adaptation finance
10. Notes with concern that the current provision of climate finance for adaptation remains insufficient to respond to worsening climate change impacts in developing country Parties;
11. Urges developed country Parties to urgently and significantly scale up their provision of climate finance, technology transfer and capacity-building for adaptation so as to respond to the needs of developing country Parties as part of a global effort, including for the formulation and implementation of national adaptation plans;
12. Recognizes the importance of the adequacy and predictability of adaptation finance, including the value of the Adaptation Fund in delivering dedicated support for adaptation;
13. Welcomes the recent pledges made by many developed country Parties to increase their provision of climate finance to support adaptation in developing country Parties in response to their growing needs, including contributions made to the Adaptation Fund and the Least Developed Countries Fund, which represent significant progress compared with previous efforts;
14. Calls upon multilateral development banks, other financial institutions and the private sector to enhance finance mobilization in order to deliver the scale of resources needed to achieve climate plans, particularly for adaptation, and encourages Parties to continue to explore innovative approaches and instruments for mobilizing finance for adaptation from private sources;
IV. Mitigation
15. Reaffirms the long-term global goal to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change;
16. Recognizes that the impacts of climate change will be much lower at the temperature increase of 1.5 °C compared with 2 °C and resolves to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C;
17. Also recognizes that limiting global warming to 1.5 °C requires rapid, deep and sustained reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions, including reducing global carbon dioxide emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 relative to the 2010 level and to net zero around mid-century, as well as deep reductions in non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gases;
18. Further recognizes that this requires accelerated action in this critical decade, on the basis of the best available scientific knowledge and equity, reflecting common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities and in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty;
19. Invites Parties to consider further actions to reduce by 2030 non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gas emissions, including methane;
20. Calls upon Parties to accelerate the development, deployment and dissemination of technologies, and the adoption of policies, to transition towards low-emission energy systems, including by rapidly scaling up clean power generation and accelerating the phaseout of unabated coal power and of inefficient subsidies for fossil fuels;
21. Emphasizes the importance of protecting, conserving and restoring nature and ecosystems, including forests and other terrestrial and marine ecosystems, to achieve the long-term global goal of the Convention by acting as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases and protecting biodiversity, while ensuring social and environmental safeguards;
V. Finance, technology transfer and capacity-building for mitigation and adaptation
22. Urges developed country Parties to provide enhanced support, including through financial resources, technology transfer and capacity-building, to assist developing country Parties with respect to both mitigation and adaptation, in continuation of their existing obligations under the Convention, and encourages other Parties to provide or continue to provide such support voluntarily;
23. Notes with concern the growing needs of developing country Parties, in particular due to the increasing impacts of climate change and increased indebtedness as a consequence of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic;
24. Welcomes the first report on the determination of needs of developing country Parties related to implementing the Convention and the Paris Agreement and the fourth Biennial Assessment and Overview of Climate Finance Flows by the Standing Committee on Finance;
25. Emphasizes the need to mobilize climate finance from all sources to reach the level needed to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, including significantly increasing support for developing country Parties, beyond USD 100 billion per year;
26. Notes with deep regret that the goal of developed country Parties to mobilize jointly USD 100 billion per year by 2020 in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation has not yet been met, and welcomes the increased pledges made by many developed country Parties and the Climate Finance Delivery Plan: Meeting the US$100 Billion Goal and the collective actions contained therein;
27. Urges developed country Parties to fully deliver on the USD 100 billion goal urgently and through to 2025, and emphasizes the importance of transparency in the implementation of their pledges;
28. Urges the operating entities of the Financial Mechanism, multilateral development banks and other financial institutions to further scale up investments in climate action, and calls for a continued increase in the scale and effectiveness of climate finance from all sources globally, including grants and other highly concessional forms of finance;
29. Re-emphasizes the need for scaled up financial resources to take into account the needs of those countries particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, and in this regard encourages relevant multilateral institutions to consider how climate vulnerabilities should be reflected in the provision and mobilization of concessional financial resources and other forms of support, including Special Drawing Rights;
30. Emphasizes the challenges faced by many developing country Parties in accessing finance and encourages further efforts to enhance access to finance, including by the operating entities of the Financial Mechanism;
31. Notes the specific concerns raised with regard to eligibility and ability to access concessional forms of climate finance, and re-emphasizes the importance of the provision of scaled-up financial resources, taking into account the needs of developing country Parties that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change;
32. Encourages relevant providers of financial support to consider how vulnerability to the adverse effects of climate change could be reflected in the provision and mobilization of concessional financial resources and how they could simplify and enhance access to finance;
33. Acknowledges the progress made on capacity-building, particularly in relation to enhancing the coherence and coordination of capacity-building activities towards the implementation of the Convention and the Paris Agreement;
34. Recognizes the need to continue supporting developing country Parties in identifying and addressing both current and emerging capacity-building gaps and needs, and to catalyse climate action and solutions to respond;
35. Emphasizes the importance of strengthening cooperative action on technology development and transfer for the implementation of mitigation and adaptation action, including accelerating, encouraging and enabling innovation, and the importance of predictable, sustainable and adequate funding from diverse sources for the Technology Mechanism;
VI. Loss and damage
36. Acknowledges that climate change has already caused and will increasingly cause loss and damage and that, as temperatures rise, impacts from climate and weather extremes, as well as slow onset events, will pose an ever-greater social, economic and environmental threat;
37. Also acknowledges the important role of a broad range of stakeholders at the local, national and regional level, including indigenous peoples and local communities, in averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change;
38. Reiterates the urgency of scaling up action and support, including finance, technology transfer and capacity-building, for implementing approaches for averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change in developing country Parties that are particularly vulnerable to these effects;
39. Urges developed country Parties, the operating entities of the Financial Mechanism, United Nations entities and intergovernmental organizations and other bilateral and multilateral institutions, including non-governmental organizations and private sources, to provide enhanced and additional support for activities addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change;
40. Recognizes the importance of demand-driven technical assistance in building capacity to implement approaches to averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change;
41. Welcomes the further operationalization of the Santiago network for averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change, including the agreement on its functions and process for further developing its institutional arrangements;
42. Decides that the Santiago network will be supported by a technical assistance facility to provide financial support for technical assistance for the implementation of relevant approaches to avert, minimize, and address loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change in developing countries through the Santiago network in support of the functions as set out in decisions -/CMA.3 and -/CP.26;
43. Decides that the modalities, funding arrangements, and possible elements for the terms of reference for the technical assistance facility, including potential hosts and its institutional arrangements be determined by the process set out in paragraph 10 of decisions -/CMA.3 and -/CP.26;
44. Further decides that the body providing secretarial services to facilitate work under the network to be determined in accordance with paragraph 10 of decisions -/CMA.3 and -/CP.26 will administer the technical assistance facility;
45. Urges developed country Parties to provide funds for the technical facility and for the operation of the Santiago network;
46. Acknowledges the importance of coherent action to respond to the scale of needs caused by the adverse impacts of climate change;
47. Resolves to strengthen partnerships between developing and developed countries, funds, technical agencies, civil society and communities to improve understanding of how responses to averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage can be improved;
48. Requests the Subsidiary Body for Implementation to organize a workshop at the next session, drawing on the work of the Warsaw International Mechanism’s expert group on action and support and submissions from Parties and stakeholders to examine ways in which the provision and efficiency of finance to avert, minimize and address loss and damage can be enhanced;
VII. Implementation
49. Recalls that the round tables among Parties and non-Party stakeholders on pre-2020 implementation and ambition held in 2018, 2019 and 2020 helped to highlight and enhance understanding of the efforts of and challenges faced by Parties in relation to action and
support in the pre-2020 period, as well as of the work of the constituted bodies in that period;
50. Strongly urges all Parties that have not yet done so to meet any outstanding pledges under the Convention as soon as possible;
51. Welcomes the action taken to unlock the potential for sectoral action to contribute to fulfilling and implementing national targets, particularly in emission-intensive sectors;
52. Recognizes the need to take into consideration the concerns of Parties with economies most affected by the impacts of response measures, particularly developing country Parties, in line with Article 4, paragraphs 8 and 10, of the Convention;
53. Also recognizes the importance of protecting, conserving and restoring ecosystems to deliver crucial services, including acting as net carbon sinks, reducing vulnerability to climate change impacts and supporting sustainable livelihoods, including for indigenous peoples and local communities;
54. Encourages Parties to take an integrated approach to addressing the issues referred to in paragraph 53 above in national and local policy and planning decisions;
55. Also recognizes the need to ensure just transitions that promote sustainable development and eradication of poverty, and the creation of decent work and quality jobs, including through making financial flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emission and climate-resilient development, including through deployment and transfer of technology, and provision of support to developing country Parties;
VIII. Collaboration
56. Recognizes the importance of international collaboration on innovative climate action, including technological advancement, across all actors of society, sectors and regions, in contributing to progress towards the objective of the Convention and the goals of the Paris Agreement;
57. Recalls Article 3, paragraph 5, of the Convention and the importance of cooperation to address climate change and support sustainable economic growth and development;
58. Recognizes the important role of non-Party stakeholders, including civil society, indigenous peoples, local communities, youth, children and other stakeholders, in contributing to progress towards the objective of the Convention and the goals of the Paris Agreement;
59. Welcomes the improvement of the Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action for enhancing ambition, the leadership and actions of the High-Level Champions, and the work of the secretariat on the Non-State Actor Zone for Climate Action platform to support accountability and track progress of voluntary initiatives;
60. Also welcomes the high-level communiqué on the regional climate weeks and encourages the continuation of regional climate weeks where Parties and non-Party stakeholders can strengthen their credible and durable response to climate change at the regional level;
61. Further welcomes the informal summary reports by the Chair of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice on the ocean and climate change dialogue to consider how to strengthen adaptation and mitigation action and on the dialogue on the relationship between land and climate change adaptation related matters;
62. Invites Parties to submit views on how to enhance climate action on land under existing UNFCCC processes and requests the Chair of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice to prepare an informal summary report thereon and make it available to the Conference of the Parties at its twenty-seventh session;
63. Invites the relevant work programmes and constituted bodies under the UNFCCC to consider how to integrate and strengthen ocean-based action in their existing mandates and workplans and to report on these activities within the existing reporting processes, as appropriate;
64. Also invites the Chair of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice to hold an annual dialogue, starting at the fifty-sixth session of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (June 2022), to strengthen ocean-based action and to prepare an informal summary report thereon and make it available to the Conference of the Parties at its twenty-seventh session;
65. Urges Parties to swiftly begin implementing the Glasgow work programme on Action for Climate Empowerment, respecting, promoting and considering their respective obligations on human rights, as well as gender equality and empowerment of women;
66. Expresses appreciation for the outcomes of the sixteenth Conference of Youth, organized by the constituency of children and youth non-governmental organizations and held in Glasgow in November 2021, and the “Youth4Climate2021: Driving Ambition” event hosted by Italy in Milan, Italy, in September 2021;
67. Urges Parties and stakeholders to ensure meaningful youth participation and representation in multilateral, national and local decision-making processes, including under the Convention and the Paris Agreement;
68. Invites future Presidencies of the Conference of the Parties, with the support of the secretariat, to facilitate the organization of a youth-led climate forum for dialogue between Parties and youth, to be held in conjunction with the sessions of the Conference of the Parties, in collaboration with the UNFCCC children and youth constituency and other youth organizations with a view to contributing to the implementation of the Glasgow work programme on Action for Climate Empowerment;
69. Emphasizes the important role of indigenous peoples’ and local communities’ culture and knowledge in effective action on climate change, and urges Parties to actively involve indigenous peoples and local communities in designing and implementing climate action and to engage with the second three-year workplan of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform, for 2022–2024;
70. Expresses its recognition for the important role the observer organizations play, including the nine non-governmental organization constituencies, in sharing their knowledge, and their calls to see ambitious action to meet the objectives of the Convention and collaborating with Parties to that end;
71. Encourages Parties to increase the full, meaningful and equal participation of women in climate action and to ensure gender-responsive implementation and means of implementation, which are vital for raising ambition and achieving climate goals;
72. Calls upon Parties to strengthen their implementation of the enhanced Lima work programme on gender and its gender action plan;
73. Takes note of the estimated budgetary implications of the activities to be undertaken by the secretariat referred to in this decision;
74. Requests that the actions of the secretariat called for in this decision be undertaken subject to the availability of financial resources.
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