Habari Kushughulikia Mazingira

Kuangazia ushughulikiaji wa mabadiliko ya tabianchi

Dharura ya tabianchi ni matokeo ya moja kwa moja ya matumizi ya kaboni nzito ardhini na kwa kilimo, uchukuzi, michakato ya ujenzi na michakato ya viwanda na vyanzo chafuzi vya nishati. Bila mabadiliko makubwa kwa sekta hizi na bila kupunguza athari za hewa ya ukaa, kuna matumaini kidogo ya kulinda sayari dhidi ya athari mbaya za joto ulimwenguni. 

Upeperushaji huu wa moja kwa moja utakufanya upate habari za hivi punde kutoka kwa Kongamano la Umoja wa Mataifa la Mabadiliko ya Tabianchi, linalojulikana kama Kongamano la Nchi Wanachama (COP29) Mfumo wa Umoja wa Mataifa wa Mabadiliko ya Tabianchi (UNFCCC) utakaofanyika nchini Baku, Azerbaijan.  

11 Nov 2024 16:27

World Urban Forum highlights crucial climate role cities play

City skyline
Pexels

Last week saw the 12th World Urban Forum (WUF) take place in Cairo, where the crucial role cities need to play in effective climate action was highlighted.  

Elisabeth Mrema, UNEP Deputy Executive Director, emphasized the crucial role of cities in climate action, highlighting their responsibility for more than 70 per cent of global CO2 emissions and the need for localized climate solutions.  

UNEP led more than 15 events on the topics of urban finance, climate-resilient and nature-positive cities, extreme heat, food waste, plastic pollution, and sustainable mobility. The event also saw the relaunch of the 2024 Food Waste Index Report and the 2024 State of Finance for Nature in Cities report, highlighting the importance of multilevel governance and cross-sectoral cooperation for sustainable urban development.  

UNEP-led events focused on everything from addressing funding gaps to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals to how cities can help achieve a reduction cooling-related emissions by 68 per cent by 2050, as well as the need to develop green and resilient buildings. 

11 Nov 2024 14:50

What happened at the ‘nature COP’ in Colombia?

COP16 in Cali
Duncan Moore/UNEP

COP29 is not the only COP – or conference of the parties – to take place this month, with COP16 having wrapped up in Cali, Colombia, last week. 

With its focus on biodiversity and nature restoration, the event – sometimes billed as the 'nature COP' – saw agreement reached on an expanded role of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in saving biodiversity and a groundbreaking agreement on the operationalization of a new global mechanism to share benefits from digital genetic information. 

However, an agreement could not be reached on a fund to help developing countries restore natural ecosystems.  

Read more about COP16 here.

11 Nov 2024 13:00

WMO Report: 2024 set to be hottest year on record

plumes of smoke
Pexels

2024 is on track to be the warmest year on record, with the global average near surface temperature even higher than in 2023, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).  Today saw the release of the WMO’s State of the Climate 2024 Update, which paints a stark picture of the unfolding climate crisis.  

The report reveals that 2015-2024 will be the warmest ten years on record; the loss of ice from glaciers, sea-level rise and ocean heating are accelerating; and extreme weather is wreaking havoc on communities and economies across the world. 

Read the full report here.

11 Nov 2024 11:55

COP29 has opened to calls for action

COP29 logo
UN Climate Change/Habib Samadov

Thousands of delegates, observers and members of civil society are arriving at Baku Stadium for the first day of COP29. Earlier, at the opening ceremony, Mukhtar Babayev, the summit president-elect, called the two-week event a “moment of truth for the Paris Agreement." 

The Paris Agreement goal is to keep global average temperatures 1.5C above pre-industrial average. However a report last week from the EU's climate service revealed that 2024 would be the first year to breach that target, and is "virtually certain" to be the hottest year on record.

UNFCCC head Simon Stiell highlighted the widespread effects of the climate crisis, pointing out how it “is affecting every single individual in the world in one way or another, pushing up energy bills, furthering global instability, and taking lives." 

 

11 Nov 2024 10:00

Explore UNEP’s climate action series

Students and a teacher in a classroom
Image: Kéré Architecture/Enrico Cano

UNEP works in countries around the world helping to tackle the climate crisis. From sustainable design solutions in African schools to a greenbelt project in a Mexican city, the Climate Action series features projects around the world. 

11 Nov 2024 09:00

What was achieved at COP28 in UAE?

A crowd at the Climate COP28
Image: UNFCCC

While all eyes on are Baku this morning as COP29 starts, it’s worth recalling what was achieved at COP28 took place in Dubai last year. While the final text avoided calling for the “phase out” of coal, oil and gas, as many nations had hoped, there were some positives included pledges to transition away from fossil fuels; reduce methane emissions by 30 per cent; and triple renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency improvements by 2030.

Read the full article.

11 Nov 2024 08:00

Welcome to the COP29 live feed

Baku, Azerbaijan - Aerial View of City Buildings near Body of Water
Image: Mikhail Nilov

Thanks for joining us this morning as COP29 kicks off in the Azerbaijan capital, Baku. Delegates, observers, politicians, officials and a host of others are arriving in Baku Stadium for what is hoped will be a productive two weeks.   

We will be posting all the relevant events, news and updates here on our live feed and remember to check UNEP’s social channels too.  

Watch COP29 Opening Ceremony at 11:00h AZT/GMT+4

UNEP on X 

08 Nov 2024 13:53

Bangkok advances e-mobility initiative ahead of World Sustainable Transport Day

Electric motorbikes
Image: ENTEC

In anticipation of World Sustainable Transport Day on November 26, Bangkok is charging ahead with its electric mobility ambitions. With national partners and 30 new volunteer taxi drivers, UNEP launched the second phase of an innovative electric motorcycle pilot project funded by the European Union.

The initiative addresses Thailand's significant transport emissions, which comprise one-third of the country's CO2 output from its 44 million vehicles.

The first phase showed promising results: electric moto-taxis covered 759,000 kilometres, reduced energy use by 20 per cent, and avoided 39 tons of CO2 emissions. Thailand aims to have electric vehicles make up 40 per cent of new two-wheeler sales by 2030 and 100 per cent by 2035, mainly targeting Bangkok.

This project supports Thailand's goals to combat climate change and reduce air pollution, which, if left unchecked, is projected to cause 25,000 annual deaths by 2030.

Learn more about UNEP’s Global Electric Mobility Programme.

08 Nov 2024 11:13

What can we expect from COP29?

Baku skyline
Unsplash/Lloyd Alozie

 

COP29 kicks off in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Monday with a host of issues on the table. The gathering is being billed as the “finance COP,” with leaders set to explore how to live up to a pledge made at last year’s COP to transition away from fossil fuels and triple investments in renewable energy.  With 2024 almost certain to be the hottest year on record, it’s vital that real progress is made.  

So, what can we expect to happen in the next two weeks?  Read this handy COP29 preview to find out. 

07 Nov 2024 16:21

Adaptation Gap Report: Climate finance needs not being met

As climate impacts intensify and hit the world’s poorest hardest, UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2024: Come hell and high water finds that nations must dramatically step up adaptation, starting with a commitment to act on finance at COP29. 

Launched earlier today, the report calls on countries to significantly scale-up adaptation this decade to address rising impacts of the climate crisis. Right now, there is a climate finance gap of US$187-359 billion annually which means countries in the developing world cannot adequately protect themselves against the impact of the climate crisis.

Read the full report here