Post COP27: Positive: the intense two weeks of talks brought poorer countries at greater risk from climate change a step closer to a fund of finance from wealthy nations to help counter the impacts. The ‘loss and damage’ fund is established, but previous pledges for financial help are still awaited, postponed now until 2023.
Prayer: that funding is made available in concrete and practical ways.
Negative: no further commitment to phasing out use of fossil fuels.
Prayer: that the work on the ground to reduce emissions continues to make a difference, and for a greater recognition of the costs to the planet and to humanity of a failure to reduce significantly the world’s dependence on fossil fuels.
Future COP: There is much work to be done before the next COP in Dubai. As former Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, said after COP27: it is important for people to ‘keep positive’ and to remember that ‘small actions can have big effects’ on the planet.
Prayer: that negotiations are started now, so there can be both clarity and transparency in setting effective goals by the time of COP28; that people will remember their small actions really do count.
Pre-COP15 This, the UN Biodiversity Conference, begins in Montreal tomorrow, 7th December, and continues until 19th December. Read about it here
Positive: governments meeting to establish a new framework and goals for mitigating biodiversity loss around the world.
Prayer: that there is openness, honesty and clarity about the facts surrounding biodiversity loss and what can be done to influence change in the future for the sake of the planet and all its creatures. Specific goals:
Adoption of an equitable and comprehensive framework matched by the resources needed for implementation
Clear targets to address overexploitation, pollution, fragmentation and unsustainable agricultural practices
A plan that safeguards the rights of indigenous peoples and recognises their contributions as stewards of nature
Finance for biodiversity and alignment of financial flows with nature to drive finances toward sustainable investments and away from environmentally harmful ones
Carolyn Scriven 6th December 2022