What is it and will COP27 make progress?

Loss and damage: what is it and will COP27 make progress?

UN representative at COP26 last year. photo: President of the Republic of Armenia

The world awaits the UN climate talks COP27The meeting will be held in Egypt from November 6 to 18, and many hope to see progress on the “loss and damage” issue.

This COP27 website Said one of the goals of the meeting was to “clarify support for loss and damage…”

Secretary General of the United Nations urged Meaningful progress must be made in addressing loss and damage.

“‘Loss and damage’ debate to dominate COP27 agenda,” said the Financial Times headline.

For journalists: Experts from the Columbia Climate Institute will be at COP27 and commenting. see who goes.

But what exactly does the term “loss and damage” mean? Why is it so difficult to solve, and what are the prospects for a breakthrough at COP27?

What is loss and damage?

In short, “loss and damage” is self-explanatory. It refers to the physical damage caused by hotter climates — coastlines disappearing from rising sea levels, infrastructure razed by climate-change-induced storms, crops drying out from droughts, and more.

But in the context of COP27, the situation is more complicated than that. “Loss and damage” carries connotations of responsibility and climate justice—because the countries that profit the most from burning fossil fuels are not the ones most affected by climate change. Therefore, “loss and damage” has become almost synonymous with “compensation”.

Lisa Dyer is a lecturer at the Columbia Climate School.

Forbes report For some countries, such as the Bahamas, the debt caused by climate-related disasters can be higher than the GDP of the entire country.

“At its most basic level, loss and damage is just about liability,” explained Lisa Dyer, Lecturer at Columbia Climate School. “It just means, ‘You did this to us, so you should pay for the loss.'”

Why is progress on loss and damage so difficult?

Michael Gerrard is the director of the Columbia Climate School Sabine Center for Climate Change Law.

Loss and damage have been the subject of UN climate talks for more than a decade Michael GerrardDean of Columbia Climate Institute Sabine Center for Climate Change Law“Developing countries, victims of climate change, have been calling for years,” he explained, “but hardly a developed country is interested in paying for it.”

Richer countries have been reluctant to acknowledge legal responsibility for climate change and its impacts, nor to agree on specific donation amounts.

The issue of loss and damage is also entangled with ethical and economic questions that are difficult to answer, let alone agree on, Dell said. “The fight is about, is that responsibility valid? How do we quantify it? Who owes whom?”

Actions taken to date on loss and damage

Rich countries have acknowledged that they bear the brunt of climate change. Dale pointed out that each country that signed the “United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change” acquiesced that countries have different degrees of responsibility for causing climate change, and their ability to deal with climate change is also different. “But Loss and Damage wants us to put it into action and come up with a dollar value,” Dell said, “and it becomes very, very tricky.”

In 2009, at COP15, rich countries pledged to provide $100 billion a year to less affluent countries to support climate action and adaptation to climate change. So far, rich countries have largely failed to deliver on that promise.

Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis: ‘Promises and promises have been made but not delivered’ tell forbes“We are now in a race against time…As the climate catastrophe spreads, so too will pressures on borders, food production and geopolitical stability. Urgent action is needed now – can’t wait any longer.”

While Dale agrees that wealthier nations are doing little to their due, she points out that they are helping in ways that aren’t always labeled as losses and damages.

“No one writes a cheque that says ‘Dear Gambia: this is the amount of loss and damage’, but what they do is throw billions of dollars into funds administered and distributed by the United Nations, which are funded by Administered by the United Nations and distributed to developing countries in need of technology and support. Economic support.”

In addition to UN funding, aid may also come from academic institutions and humanitarian organizations such as USAID. It might look like a new water sanitation system, an energy project or support for other types of infrastructure development, but in Dale’s book these represent a version of loss and damages.

What is the hope for progress at COP27?

Gerrard is not expecting rich countries to make major financial commitments at COP27 on loss and damage.

“The U.S. government is unlikely to take any drastic action before the midterm elections,” he said, “and the looming energy crisis in Europe will certainly dampen enthusiasm in these countries. It’s hard to take significant new action now.”

Some countries, such as Japan, New Zealand, Australia or Canada, may be more likely to contribute, Gerrard said, “but it’s a far cry from what developing countries are asking for.”

However, he does think there may be other avenues to help less wealthy countries, such as debt relief for hard-hit Pakistan. catastrophic flood this summer. “It’s easier to reduce debt than to write checks,” Gerald explained.

He also sees potential in strengthening technical assistance, rather than financial aid, to help developing countries recover from disasters and reduce their vulnerability.

Time to change the subject?

“It’s hard for me to imagine any country, let alone the U.S., investing so much money to help adapt in far-flung lands. It’s really hard to justify politically,” Dyer said.

She argues that other forms of aid – such as the technical assistance mentioned above – will not only be more popular in rich countries, but may also be more effective in the long run, especially where governments have lower capacity and higher corruption.

“These countries are suffering legitimate damage from climate change, and they don’t need a blank check — they need solutions and ways to adapt,” she said. “These outcomes are more targeted and narrower in scope, and can be met not only through financial support, but also through modifications to the terms of trade.”

Another advantage of this strategy is that avenues for such assistance already exist, rather than requiring the world to create an entirely new system of compensation for losses and damages, which is problematic in many ways.

“In my opinion,” Dell said, “the way forward is to leverage those institutional pathways that already exist. This is the best place to start trying to address some of these adaptation needs and who will pay for it.”