One of the biggest questions at COP 27 will be who should pay for climate change.
Climate disasters have been unprecedented. The floods in Pakistan killed over 1,000 people, destroyed nearly 2 million homes, and caused an estimated fifteen billion dollars in damages. People in East Africa are at risk of famine due to the dry weather.
The US, which has contributed 20% of the world's historical emissions, should pay for these disasters because they are hitting hardest for countries that have not contributed much to climate change. China emits more today than any other nation and is the second largest historical emitter.
“We are on a highway to climate hell with our foot on the accelerator.”
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres
Climate financing for "loss and damages" made it onto the official agenda for the 27th Conference of the Parties. Climate disasters like floods and droughts are becoming more common, and this funding will help countries deal with them. It's not clear what progress officials will make on actually coming to an agreement because countries are already falling behind on previous climate finance obligations.
A group of countries, including the US, pledged to give $100 billion dollars per year by 2020. The funding is supposed to help developing countries cut their emissions and adapt to the effects of climate change.
The contribution group reached just $83 billion in financing in 2020. According to a recent analysis by CarbonBrief, the US, Canada, and the UK aren't contributing their fair share.
We will keep an eye on the conversations over the next two weeks to see what officials come up with. Hopefully, not just more boring, right?
The inflation reduction act was signed into law in August and provides $370 billion in funding for climate and energy action in the US.
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