COP stands for Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)- It is a meeting of UNFCCC party nations to assess progress in addressing climate change and to negotiate and implement measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address the impacts of climate change. COP27 successfully ran from November 6 to November 18, 2022, in Sharm al-Sheikh, Egypt.
This summit was marred by frustration on the part of most researchers at the lack of ambition to phase out fossil fuels. However, there was one lesson learned from the conference delegations from Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) agreed to create a "loss and damage fund" to help them cover the costs of climate change impacts.
The summary document agreed upon at COP27 on November 20 states that to limit global warming to 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels, "rapid, deep, and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions" are needed by 2030 but the policy for remove fossil fuels is blocked by developed oil-producing countries.
The loss and damage wrought by climate change disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, namely those on the front lines of crises with the fewest resources. Vulnerable countries have long sought financial support from rich nations to tackle the increasingly alarming and damaging climate impacts that are not being held accountable for their causes. However, many developed countries, including the US and EU, have long resisted such requests.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on developed countries to tax windfall profits from oil and gas companies and divert part of these revenues towards recovery efforts in countries affected by climate disasters.
The effects of the climate change crisis are already being felt around the world, from deadly floods in Pakistan to famine caused by drought in the Horn of Africa. Even though the world is trying to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, many of the dangerous effects of climate change are already underway and locked in.
According to Economic Co-operation and Development, high-income countries only channel 70% of climate finance to middle-income countries, not to very vulnerable low-income countries. Only 22 of 86 countries included cost figures for their adaptation priorities in the World Resources Institute's review of national climate plans.
Adaptation is the main focus at COP27, but major decisions on finance and implementation are still far from expectations. Adaptation remains chronically underfunded, and action is lagging.
At this summit, new commitments totaling over $230 million were made to the Adaptation Fund. This commitment will help the most vulnerable communities adapt to climate change through practical adaptation solutions.
COP27 President Sameh Shoukry announced the Sharm el-Sheikh Adaptation Program, building the resilience of people living in the most climate-vulnerable communities by 2030. The UN Standing Committee on Climate Change was asked to prepare a report on doubling adaptation funding for consideration at COP28 next year.
According to the UN Official Website, "These results move us forward," said Simon Stiell, UN Executive Secretary on Climate Change. "We have forged the way forward in decades of conversations about financing loss and damage–discussing how we address the impact on communities whose lives and livelihoods have been damaged by the worst impacts of climate change."