Climate change blogs
-
The climate crisis and the fastest societal change, ever
27 January 2022‘Keeping 1.5 alive’ is going to take a monumental effort. Clare Shakya and Andrew Norton discuss factors that could drive the political ambition desperately needed for governments to keep the Paris Agreement’s most critical target in sight and deliver on climate finance promises ] ‘Keeping 1.5 alive’ is going to take a monumental effort. Clare Shakya and Andrew Norton discuss factors that could drive the political ambition desperately needed for governments to keep the Paris Agreement’s most critical target in sight and deliver on climate finance promises long overdue
-
Loss and damage: erosion of Nepal’s life, land and beauty is deep and irreparable
19 January 2022Life-threatening floods from bursting glacial lakes are just one of the many impacts of climate change that are leaving the people of Nepal unable to cope. Guest blogger Shreya K.C. calls on world leaders to replace fake handshakes with concrete action
-
Bringing youth’s energy from the streets to the climate negotiating table
13 January 2022Guest blogger Yared Abera shares how he navigated the steep learning curve to becoming a climate negotiator and the valuable guidance he received along the way
-
Why COP26 was worth it
6 January 2022Eva Peace Mukayiranga describes challenges and highlights from the negotiating rooms in Glasgow and shares how she’ll be taking forward skills she learnt to COP27
-
Planning ahead: how the CRISP-M tool advances early climate action
5 January 2022A new digital tool combining scientific climate risk information with local and traditional knowledge is helping communities in India manage climate risks more effectively
-
Decoloniality and the new ethics of climate and nature
23 November 2021"How many planets do we need if everyone on earth were to live just like you?"
-
COP27 and the important year ahead
22 November 2021Just over a week on from the end of COP26 in Glasgow and the dust is settling. But as Andrew Norton reflects, any gains made from the event will require ongoing work and citizens demanding more radical action
-
Tackling loss and damage: who is most vulnerable to disaster displacement?
17 November 2021Drawing on recent research, Simon Addison and Sam Barrett explain why disaster displacement risk assessments must integrate better quality data on the specific vulnerabilities of different people to escalating climate risks
-
New solidarity funds could ringfence finance for loss and damage
8 November 2021On Adaptation, Loss and Damage Day at COP26, Clara Gallagher and Saleemul Huq consider how National Solidarity Funds for loss and damage could get new and additional finance to countries experiencing devastating and relentless loss and damage caused by climate change
-
Indigenous Peoples and forest communities are central to tackling the climate crisis – but they need finance
5 November 2021Forests, and the communities who protect and manage them, are critical in tackling climate change and nature loss. From COP26, guest blogger Gustavo Sánchez explains why they can no longer be ignored in the distribution of climate finance and describes a new fund that gets money directly to local forest level
-
Financing least developed countries’ climate strategies: taking the long view
4 November 2021COP26 must urge all countries to continue to submit and implement long-term climate strategies – but least developed countries will need long-term financing to match
-
Delivering high-quality, predictable and accessible climate finance for least developed countries
3 November 2021Increasing climate finance is high on the COP26 agenda; but for climate finance to bring lasting change it must be provided over the long term, be accessible and go towards strengthening governance systems
-
New guide for linking sovereign debt to climate and nature action
2 November 2021During this 'super year', the world is focusing on international summits aiming to tackle global crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. But a third crisis is looming: debt. A new practical 'how-to' guide for innovative debt instruments helps support developing countries tackle the triple crisis of debt, climate and nature
-
Climate-induced migration illustrates loss and damage already being felt by communities
30 October 2021As global warming bites, vulnerable communities are being pushed from their homes by disasters and longer-term pressures, and desperately require financial help
-
Can COP26 reach ambitious outcomes for LDCs?
22 October 2021Ambitious, inclusive and equitable outcomes at COP26 are vital. Will major emitters commit to significant carbon cuts? Will countries honour their climate finance pledges? And how will finance reach those most in need? Anna Schulz sets out four outcomes for COP26 to be labelled a success for the Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States.
-
Inclusive negotiations: are hybrid meetings the answer?
20 October 2021As the organisers of COP26 face the complex challenges of getting 10-20,000 delegates to Glasgow for in-person negotiations during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, what are the pros and cons of hybrid formats for making negotiations more inclusive
-
Humanitarian action is part of climate response – but must be early and locally led
14 October 2021Humanitarian actors could be key players in the global climate response, especially through their efforts to address climate-induced loss and damage. But their actions must be pre-emptive and locally-led. Anna Carthy and Simon Addison look at a new funding mechanism that helps humanitarians scale up local efforts and proactively address climate risks
-
Escalating local climate resilience finance
12 October 2021A new IIED report offers 30 practical options to help local people build vital resilience into their livelihoods, landscapes and food systems and calls for an urgent increase in climate finance to and through local organisations
-
Can COP26 lay firm foundations for an ambitious new climate finance goal?
11 October 2021With negotiations for the post-2025 climate goal due to commence at COP26, we ask what lessons can be learned from the previous – unmet – target and explore the priority issues for least developed countries (LDCs), who will be seeking changes to both the volume and nature of the climate finance they receive
-
How the digital divide threatens the success and legitimacy of the COP26 talks
8 October 2021The digital divide is in danger of stifling the voices of those representing some of the communities likely to be worst affected by the impacts of climate change
-
Locally-led action key to delivering the new global biodiversity framework
7 October 2021Next week’s UN biodiversity conference (COP15) will be a milestone in global efforts to stop biodiversity loss and put nature on a path to recovery. Dilys Roe and Ebony Holland put forward the case that people and locally-led conservation efforts need to be at the centre of this transformation
-
A glimmer of hope ahead of COP26 – financing for adaptation
6 October 2021A newly formed group of champion countries committed to ramping up flows of adaptation finance brings promise − provided they can also improve access, explains guest blogger Angelique Pouponneau
-
Street vendors and garbage pickers need protection from climate extremes
5 October 2021Around two billion people globally are considered informal workers, in jobs like street vending, agriculture or collecting and recycling plastic rubbish. Many earn on a daily basis and lack savings, healthcare or other social protections. So they typically can’t afford to stop working in the face of COVID-19 and other emergencies
-
Five pathways to deliver rapid support for a green and resilient COVID-19 recovery in the LDCs
1 October 2021Drawing on a recent situational analysis report, Ritu Bharadwaj describes transformative pathways for setting the Least Developed Countries on a path towards a just, equitable and green recovery
-
Locally-led nature-based solutions can deliver global leaders’ pledge
28 September 2021One year on from the launch of the Leaders’ Pledge for Nature – when political leaders committed to reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 – Xiaoting Hou Jones, drawing on examples from the Least Developed Countries, sets out why locally-led nature-based solutions are indispensable for turning the pledge into action and delivering a green COVID-19 recovery