President Muhammadu Buhari has called
for urgent climate actions from, especially developed countries to tackle the effects of climate change in Africa.
Buhari, who was represented by Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abdullahi, made the call on the sidelines of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27).
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The sideline Clean Energy Transition event organised by Bloomberg Philanthropies and Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) provided an opportunity for Nigeria to highlight its climate efforts and concerns.
“Without a doubt, we are at a critical time concerning the world’s climate future and our actions today and over the next few decades will determine the fate of future generations and the planet.
“This year, we have witnessed disastrous extreme weather events from terrifying wildfires in the United States to unprecedented heat waves in India, Pakistan, and Europe, to intense floods in my country, Nigeria,” he said.
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He, therefore, called for more accelerated actions from developed countries that contribute most o⁷f the emissions affecting Africa’s climate.
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“For developing nations, particularly in Africa who, despite contributing the least to both historical and current emissions, are facing climate impacts to a disproportionate degree, the case for accelerated climate action is even more pressing.
“We need to see urgent and decisive climate action from the countries most responsible for the emissions that cause climate change.
“We cannot afford any more delays; our people and nations are on the line.
The blame game should stop, affirmative and positive commitment to address these challenges must begin now,” Buhari said.
Meanwhile, he noted that Nigeria and other African countries were committed to tackling the climate change crises
“We are committed to tackling climate change by embarking on bold actions ourselves.
“African nations are demonstrating commitment via the signing of the Paris Agreement, the submission of highly ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and spending up to 9% of GDP in addressing climate change,” he added.
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Tags: COP27 Climate Summit President Muhammadu Buhari
Here's what happened today at the U.N.'s COP27 climate negotiations
International climate negotiations got underway today with dire warnings about climate-driven disasters, pleas to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and a plan for a new global weather early warning system.
The United Nations, which organizes annual climate negotiations, says about 44,000 people are attending this year's meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. That includes leaders from hundreds of nations. They have two weeks to discuss how to dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions, and pay for the costs of climate change.
Here's what happened today.
The U.N. Secretary-General warned that we're on a "highway to climate hell"
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U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres did not mince words in his opening remarks.
"We are on a highway to climate hell with our foot on the accelerator," he warned.
He also referenced the fact that the global population is expected to officially hit 8 billion people during this climate meeting.
"How will we answer when baby 8-billion is old enough to ask 'What did you do for our world, and for our planet, when you had the chance?'" Guterres asked a room full of world leaders.
There's a plan for a new early warning system for weather disasters
There's a new United Nations plan to warn people around the world about climate-related hazards like extreme storms and floods. It's called Early Warning for All.
About half the world isn't covered by multi-hazard early warning systems, which collect data about disaster risk, monitor and forecast hazardous weather, and send out emergency alerts, according to the U.N.
Coverage is worst in developing countries, which have been hit hardest by the effects of global warming.
The new plan calls for $3.1 billion to set up early-warning systems over the next five years in places that don't already have them, beginning with the poorest and most vulnerable countries and regions. More money will be needed to maintain the warning systems longer-term.
Wealthy countries and corporations were called out for not paying their fair share
Multiple world leaders voiced their frustration that wealthy countries, including the United States, are not paying enough for the costs of climate change.
At these talks, developing countries are pushing for compensation for the damages from extreme storms and rising seas, what's known as "loss and damage."
The U.S. is the country most responsible for current global warming because of past greenhouse gas emissions.
The Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Amor Mottley, went one step further in her opening speech to fellow leaders. She called out corporations that profit in our fossil-fuel intensive economy, including oil and gas companies themselves.
Those corporations should help pay for the costs associated with sea level rise, stronger hurricanes, heat waves and droughts around the world, she argued, and especially in places like her nation that are extremely vulnerable to climate change and don't have the money to protect themselves.
There was a dance performance about climate change
The performance at the end of a multi-hour session with world leaders was about 3 minutes long and told the story of global warming.
Watch it for yourself here.
U.S. offers data to help communities prepare for climate risk
The U.S. government is working with AT&T, a telecommunications company, to provide free access to data about the country's future climate risks.
The idea is to help community leaders better understand and prepare for local dangers from more extreme weather.
The Climate Risk and Resilience Portal will initially provide information about temperature, precipitation, wind and drought conditions. Additional risks such as wildfire and flooding will be added in the coming months.
"We want other organizations and communities to see where they're potentially vulnerable to climate change and take steps to become resilient," Charlene Lake, AT&T's chief sustainability officer, said in a news release.
World leaders promise to save forests
More than two dozen countries say they'll work together to stop and reverse deforestation and land degradation by 2030 in order to fight climate change.
Chaired by the United States and Ghana, the Forest and Climate Leaders' Partnership includes 26 countries and the European Union, which together account for more than one-third of the world's forests.
More than 140 countries agreed at COP26 last year in Glasgow to conserve forests and other ecosystems. However, the U.N. said on Monday that not enough money is being spent to preserve forests, which capture and store carbon.
To encourage accountability, the Forest and Climate Leaders' Partnership says it will hold annual meetings and publish progress reports.
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Why Latinos are on the front lines of climate change
Most residents of Puerto Rico still don't have electricity or water days after Hurricane Fiona caused floods and landslides. The widespread damage, just five years after Hurricane Maria destroyed much of the territory's infrastructure, revealed how unprotected the island's 3.2 million residents are as climate change makes hurricanes more powerful and rainy.
Puerto Rico's vulnerability to storms is the latest example of how Latinos in the United States often live on the front lines of global warming.
Latinos are disproportionately affected by climate-driven extreme weather, and are generally more concerned about climate change than non-Hispanic Whites, according to multiple national polls.
"Latino communities from Texas to California to Puerto Rico are the hardest hit when these climate-induced disasters occur," says Michael Méndez, who studies climate policy and environmental justice at the University of California Irvine.
"They absolutely have a real world connection to our changing climate."
Latino communities are more likely to face climate-driven extreme weather
Latinos in the U.S. are more likely than non-Hispanic Whites to experience heat waves, powerful hurricanes, sea level rise and floods, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
And that risk will only grow as the Earth heats up. For example, the EPA estimates that Hispanic and Latino people are more than 40% more likely to live in places where it will frequently be too hot to work a full day outside.
More severe heat waves are a major problem, because millions of Latinos have jobs that require them to be outside.
"For example, agricultural workers, first responders, construction workers, landscape workers," explains Juan Declet-Barreto, who studies the unequal impacts of climate change at the Union of Concerned Scientists.
"The changing climate is exposing those workers to longer hours with dangerous heat levels."
And, as the news from Puerto Rico makes clear, Latinos often live in the path of hurricanes, from Texas to the East Coast. And storms are getting more damaging as the Earth gets hotter.
Latinos help lead efforts to tackle climate change Latinos have a long history of climate and
environmental activism against pollution and climate change. That includes pushing for fair emissions reduction policies in California and equitable hurricane assistance in Texas. In Puerto Rico, many residents have spent the years since Hurricane Maria calling for a more reliable, renewable electrical grid.
A 2017 survey found that Latinos are more engaged with the topic of climate change, and more concerned about its effects, than other racial and ethnic groups in the U.S.
"Latinos recognize the reality of climate change, and recognize that it is a big problem," Declet-Barreto says. "Sometimes I think that there has been this perception that Latinos do not care about the environment because they're more concerned about the economy, jobs or immigration policies, for example. But that is really not true."
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Tags: Hurricane Fiona hispanic Puerto Rico global warming Latino climate change