The heavy lifting on climate action must begin

Context: Glasgow’s success was that it finished building the scaffolding for climate action, and countries must respond now.

Importance of Glasgow summit

• Completed the unfinished agenda initiated at Paris Agreement: Glasgow strengthened the Paris Agreement mechanism  by completing ‘Paris Rulebook’
  • Completion of transparency framework: This includes reporting rules and formats for emissions, progress on pledges and finance contributions.
  • Glasgow outcomes narrowed the climate rule gap between developed and developing countries.
  • Completion of agreed rules for carbon markets.
• Nudged countries to address climate change through enhanced pledges: Glasgow stimulated domestic processes, such as the formulation of domestic pledges or ‘Nationally Determined Contributions’ (NDCs).
• Created a benchmark of five yearly cycles for NDC updates: Requested countries to update and strengthen 2030 emission targets in their NDCs by the end of 2022, earlier expected.
  • Similarly, urged countries to prepare long-term emissions strategies, and strengthened mechanisms to scrutinise both NDCs and emissions strategies.
• Other successes: Glasgow was hailed for “keeping 1.5 degrees alive” of Paris negotiation and net-zero pledges including a surprise net zero by 2070 pledge by India.
  • Initiated the concept of ‘ambition cycle ‘ in climate negotiations.
  • Term coal ‘phase-down’ used in Glasgow summit is of considerable importance to vulnerable countries.
  • Glasgow set up an explicit two-year work programme for a ‘global goal’ on adaptation.
  • Rules were put in place to limit the scope for ‘double-counting’ of carbon credits by more than one country.

Issues associated with Glasgow summit

• Challenge of implementing climate targets like 1.5 degrees.
• Issues on coal use: Question of equity crystallised around a specific high profile clause calling for the ‘phase down of unabated coal power and phase out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies’.
  • India called for an amendment modifying ‘phase-out’ to ‘phase-down’ for coal causing storm.
• Fear among some developed countries that taking forward the ‘loss and damage’- compensating for unavoidable impacts agenda will open the door to a call for reparations.
• Issues of climate finance: Decade-long commitment of $100 billion had not been met causing frustration among developing countries.

Way forward:

• Towards climate equity:Through Implementation and focus on shorter term 2030 climate targets. And, 
  • Calling on countries to strengthen targets to align with the Paris Agreement objectives. 
  • Global support for accelerated transition away from coal: All countries should be asked to limit coal use at the same time.
  • Risks side-stepping:  By without explicitly considering that countries have different roles and responsibilities.
• Adaptation as some climate impacts are unavoidable: putting weight on the concerns of vulnerable nations and double adaptation finance by 2025.
• Multi-stranded approach towards climate finance: Through  mobilising  private finance and 
  • Publicly funded climate finance that is a right of developing countries devolving from the ‘polluter pays’ principle rather than aid.
• Creating policy space for climate action in national politics and popular support for climate change within countries.

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