Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, Cop28 President-designate, has warned that the world is losing the battle against environmental change and will continue to do so unless leading nations demonstrate courage and take decisive action. He made these remarks during a speech at a G20 ministerial environment meeting in Chennai, India. Dr. Al Jaber emphasized the responsibility of G20 countries to play a pivotal role in addressing environmental issues, stating that the world is becoming more vulnerable and less able to cope with the growing impacts of climate change.
Key points from Dr. Al Jaber’s statement include:
Urgent Need for Action: Dr. Al Jaber stressed the urgency of the situation, citing broken temperature records and the ongoing loss of biodiversity, degradation of agricultural land, and increasing food insecurity.
Clean Energy Goals: He expressed concern that a recent conference in Goa, India, aimed at doubling clean energy capacity by 2030 has not yet been reflected in G20 outcomes. Dr. Al Jaber called for collective action to scale up sustainable energy and decarbonize the existing energy system.
G20’s Role: Dr. Al Jaber reminded the G20 nations that they collectively represent a significant portion of the world’s GDP and emissions. Their decisions and actions can influence global outcomes.
Support for UN Initiatives: He urged all parties to support the UN Secretary General’s Climate Resilience Agreement and Acceleration Plan, emphasizing the need to rapidly increase the use of renewable energy sources.
Paris Agreement Commitments: Dr. Al Jaber underscored the importance of fulfilling commitments made in the Paris Agreement, including the goal of limiting global warming and its impacts.
Ecosystem Conservation: He called for efforts to protect and restore ecosystems, including efforts to halt biodiversity loss and conserve forests and coastlines.
Adaptation and Food Systems: Dr. Al Jaber emphasized the importance of adapting to climate change and transforming food systems to ensure sustainability, resilience, and the reduction of environmental impacts.
Adaptation Finance: He stressed the need for increased funding for adaptation measures and encouraged an allocation of a substantial portion of climate finance toward adaptation responses.
Vulnerable Countries: Dr. Al Jaber recognized that many vulnerable countries, particularly small island developing states and least developed nations, are already experiencing severe climate impacts that exceed their capacity to adapt.
The Cop28 climate change conference will take place in Dubai starting on November 30. Dr. Al Jaber called on all parties to bring a spirit of courage to this critical event.
