Historic ‘Loss and Damage’ Fund Adopted at COP27
After days of intense negotiations that stretched into the early morning on Sunday, countries at the UN COP27 climate summit in Egypt agreed to establish a compensation fund for developing nations suffering from climate change impacts.
Facts
- After days of intense negotiations that stretched into the early morning on Sunday, countries at the UN COP27 climate summit in Egypt agreed to establish a compensation fund for developing nations suffering from climate change impacts.
- The agreement serves as a victory for developing nations that have fought for decades for compensation for "loss and damage" from extreme weather events resulting from greenhouse emissions caused by wealthy countries.
- Pakistan's climate minister, Sherry Rehman, stated that COP27 had "responded to the voices of the vulnerable, the damaged and the lost of the whole world." She affirmed, "We have struggled for 30 years on this path, and today in Sharm el-Sheikh this journey has achieved its first positive milestone."
- The funding for "loss and damage" is still vague. Pledges for the fund are proportionally quite small, as loss and damage from climate change could potentially cost developing countries $290B to $580B annually by 2030.
- Further details about the plan will likely be refined at the next climate conference to take place in the UAE in November 2023.
- Many diplomats and activists at the summit praised the compensation fund. Others worried that nations’ reluctance to adopt more ambitious climate plans to save the +1.5°C goal set in the 2015 Paris Agreement has left the planet on a dangerous warming path.
Sources: Al Jazeera, Scmp, Bangkok Post, Le Monde, Guardian, and Washington Post.
Narratives
- Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Earth. This is a landmark deal. The "loss and damage" fund aims at helping countries that are particularly vulnerable to climate change. For the first time, COP has listened to the voices of those on the frontline of the climate crisis. It's not enough, but it will help lead the way for the future and take the necessary first steps toward justice.
- Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by The Washington Post. COP27 failed. Shortsighted political leaders and a sense of apathy have delayed necessary action toward the most ambitious goals set in the Paris Agreement. It's now inevitable the world will surpass what scientists consider a safe warming threshold. Because of the failure in Sharm el-Sheikh, the only questions now are how much the Earth will warm and how many people will suffer.
