The climate emergency is a direct consequence of carbon-heavy land-use and agriculture, transport, buildings and industrial processes and polluting energy sources. Without profound changes to these sectors and a drastic cut to carbon footprints, there is little hope of protecting the planet from the devastating effects of a warmer world.
Below are climate-related news and events from the United Nations and partners.
Asia Pacific Climate Week (APCW) starts next week from 13-17 November in Johor Bahru, hosted by the government of Malaysia.
APCW is an annual event that brings together leaders from governments, businesses, international organizations and civil society to explore ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while adapting to the mounting fallout from the climate crisis.
It is one of four annual regional climate weeks that take place throughout the year in Africa; Middle East and North Africa; Latin America and the Caribbean; and Asia-Pacific.
APCW 2023 is organized into four areas, each focusing on specific themes:
You can find a detailed list of the week's events here.
Despite government pledges to reduce fossil fuel emissions, the 2023 Production Gap Report finds that governments plan to produce around 110 per cent more fossil fuels in 2030 than would be consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C, and 69 per cent more than would be consistent with 2°C.
“Governments are literally doubling down on fossil fuel production; that spells double trouble for people and planet,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres. “We cannot address climate catastrophe without tackling its root cause: fossil fuel dependence.
The Production Gap Report – first launched in 2019 – tracks the discrepancy between governments’ planned fossil fuel production and global production levels consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C or 2°C.
Download the full report here.
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and COP28 have helped launch a declaration that unites faith leaders to drive climate action.
The Abu Dhabi Interfaith Statement for COP28 was signed earlier this week by 28 leaders from all the major religions. They committed to increased climate action and expressed “shared concern for the escalating climate impacts that imperil our cherished planet.”
UNEP will co-host a faith pavilion at COP28. The Faith Pavilion will encourage religious engagement in the climate crisis and will also showcase the Abu Dhabi Interfaith Statement for COP28.
Read full Interfaith Statement for COP28.
The city of Xalapa, Mexico is bordered by more than 5,300 hectares of mountain forest, a sprawling green sponge that soaks up rainwater and slowly, predictably, releases it to residents downstream.
At least, it used to.
A combination of climate change and deforestation is ravaging Xalapa’s protective tree cover. This is threatening water supplies for around 600,000 people and leaving Xalapa’s bare slopes vulnerable to landslides.
Enter CityAdapt, an initiative led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and funded by the Global Environment Facility. It is helping Xalapa’s residents build a protective buffer of plants and trees high in the city’s hills. This defensive shield is being paired with the construction of rainwater harvesting tanks, which are helping residents to contend with a surge in droughts, another byproduct of the climate crisis.
Read the full story here.
Today is One Health Day, an annual day to raise global awareness about the importance of One Health collaborations.
Understanding and appreciating the connections between human health, animals, and ecosystems, is needed to create a world where humans, animals, and the environment thrive together, ensuring a healthier, more sustainable planet for generations to come.
Read more about One Health Day and why it is important here.
UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report, released today, reveals a huge deficit in the funding needed to protect vulnerable communities against the worst effects of the climate crisis.
International adaptation funding – needed to protect communities against heatwaves, floods, droughts and other climate-related disasters – is just 5 to 10 per cent of what is needed today and fell in recent years. This equals an adaptation gap of between US$194 and US$366 billion a year.
UNEP’s Executive Director, Inger Andersen, highlighted what this shortfall means for vulnerable communities in a speech made earlier today.
“Without sufficient financing, implementation of adaptation actions is stalling. The consequences are being lived by hundreds of millions of people – homes being washed away, crops failing and livestock dying.”
Read the full speech here.
Today sees the launch of the Adaptation Gap Report, the first of the three ‘Gap’ reports due to the released in the run up to COP28. The Production Gap Report is published on 8 November and the Emissions Gap Report is published on 20 November.
The report provides an update on the global status and progress of the adaptation process across three elements: planning, financing, and implementation.
The 2023 edition will provides more in-depth finance assessment chapter and include a thematic deep-dive chapter on loss and damage. The report also highlights key case studies of adaptation projects from around the world.
So why do these reports matter?
Read the full article here.
Today is World Cities Day, under the theme Financing a sustainable urban future for all. With urban populations set to grow by 2.2 billion by 2050, it is vital cities embrace sustainability in everything from infrastructure to transport systems.
Cities are already experiencing the effects of the climate crisis: as climate change intensifies around the world, record-smashing heatwaves are expected to become more common, leaving a trail of urban disruption – and often death – in their wake.
But experts say cities, which are especially prone to warming, can fend off some of the worst effects of heatwaves by planting trees, restoring water bodies and tapping into other natural solutions.
Read the full article here.
On December 5, the spotlight at COP28 will turn to Indigenous Peoples as part of that day’s thematic focus.
A growing number of Indigenous Peoples around the world who are turning to the courts to compel countries to take concrete action to address climate change and other environmental perils. Experts have called the cases a new frontier in the global environmental movement and are hopeful they can jumpstart what is, in many places, a halting political effort to counter some of the gravest threats to the planet.
Due to their close ties to the land, Indigenous communities from the Arctic to the Kalahari Desert have been among the first to feel the effects of climate change. Floods, droughts, wildfires and the disappearance of wildlife have become an added burden for communities already struggling with joblessness, discrimination and political marginalization.
COP28 will feature thematic days which focus on different sectors and the climate action progress they are making. On December 6, the focus will be on transportation and the built environment, both areas crucial when it comes to reducing emissions.
In Africa, a growing number of campaigners and government officials want to make cycling and walking safer in Africa’s cities, where roads are notoriously dangerous.
They believe that will lead more people to choose what’s known as active mobility, reducing gridlock and helping to counter a climate crisis that is already sowing chaos on the continent of 1.3 billion.
