March 17, 2025

COP20—Lima Local weather Convention — World Points

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COP20—Lima Local weather Convention — World Points

Creator and Web page data

  • by Anup Shah
  • This web page Created

On this web page:

  1. Introduction
  2. Assembly end result
  3. Mainstream media reporting
  4. In context: frequent however differentiated duties
  5. Extra data
  6. Information tales from IPS

Introduction

December 1 – 14, 2014, Lima, Peru was the venue for the twentieth annual United Nations Local weather Change Convention, also referred to as the twentieth Convention of the Events — or COP 20.

The aim of this convention was to create a common settlement on local weather change motion and start the method of financing mitigation.

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Assembly end result

The assembly ended with all nations agreeing to chop again greenhouse fuel emissions. Often known as the Lima Accord, this treaty just isn’t legally binding and international locations would not have to specify how a lot they are going to in the reduction of, as a substitute agreeing to report their plans again by March 2015.

Whereas for a lot of it gave the impression of a profitable end result, others had been dissatisfied, similar to poor international locations struggling to rebuild from present impacts of local weather change who had been alarmed on the disappearance of loss and harm commitments from the ultimate textual content which has been a part of the dialogue for years.

The worldwide local weather motion, 350.org, summarized the disappointments and hopeful features of the assembly end result, noting

  1. The brand new settlement doesn’t replicate the urgency of the local weather disaster
  2. Some good agreements – however no measures to make sure implementation
  3. Least developed and susceptible nations omitted within the chilly
  4. Divestment (from fossil gasoline reliance) is extra essential than ever
  5. World momentum for actual options is stronger than ever and can carry on going.

In attempting to place a constructive spin on the general disappointment they felt, they concluded, Ultimately, a worldwide local weather treaty is only one software to fight local weather change. Actual change goes to proceed to return from the grassroots. The UN Local weather Talks proceed to be a spot the place the world’s international locations comes collectively to debate this disaster and individuals are placing in monumental efforts to ensure Paris [the next global meeting] gained’t be like Copenhagen which was filled with disappointments regardless of massive guarantees.

Samantha Smith, Chief of WWF’s World Local weather and Power Initiative, was fairly scathing of the assembly end result saying that political expediency gained over scientific urgency. She additionally famous that Developed nation governments couldn’t even handle to clarify how they are going to ship the long-promised US$100 billion per yr in local weather finance by 2020. In a transfer that seemingly dismissed the plight of probably the most susceptible international locations, they utterly eliminated any significant language about ‘loss and harm’.

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Mainstream media reporting

As with nearly each earlier assembly (with occasional exceptions), mainstream media reporting was very poor given the significance of this international problem. The place the assembly was reported it was typically in direction of the tip, and simply sound chunk sort summaries saying all international locations agreed to emission cuts and that this was a serious enchancment.

Whereas the treaty continued to say it honors the long-standing frequent however differentiated duties the mainstream media reporting (as in most years) has sometimes failed to supply clarification and context of this precept that has been an essential a part of these talks for over 2 many years; that poor and growing international locations mustn’t bear the identical duties because the developed ones (as a result of they don’t seem to be the reason for the anthropogenic carbon emissions over the earlier many years which have led to this, which is detailed way more on this web site’s web page on local weather justice).

A touch in direction of this precept might have been offered as a viewpoint of China or India, given the impression they’re being obstacles, fairly then explaining this precept in additional context.

That was simply one of many points skirted over or omitted from frequent reporting. Others included points on financing, know-how help for poorer nations, and so on. Behind the scenes, for many years, wealthy international locations have stalled on these items or actively prevented attempting to share know-how and so on, which is barely reported.

Yearly, this criticism is made from mainstream reporting, so with out following these negotiations annually, it may be simple to return away with the impression that this assembly had a constructive end result.

However as this dialogue hosted by Democracy Now! exhibits, there have been quite a lot of essential problems with competition:

Emissions-Slicing Deal Reached at COP 20 Lima, However Will It Assist Stop Catastrophic Local weather Change?, Democracy Now!, December 15, 2014.

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In context: frequent however differentiated duties

A few years in the past all nations agreed that local weather change was largely the results of actions from at this time’s industrialized nations, as carbon dioxide — the principle greenhouse fuel — stays within the ambiance for many years. But, the poorest would find yourself struggling probably the most for an issue they largely didn’t trigger. The approaches to mitigation (emissions discount) would subsequently be completely different for these teams of nations — the frequent however differentiated duties precept.

It’s on this context that the dialogue for loss and harm has come about. And it’s one thing that wealthy international locations are eager to eliminate .

The years of resistance on this problem (and plenty of others) means every time it’s mentioned once more the reactions appear to get much more hostile. Mixed with the shortage of detailed context within the mainstream media protection of this side, it then turns into simpler every time to see culprits as China and India given their monumental greenhouse emissions in recent times, in comparison with the far better quantity by the industrialized nations over the longer interval. See this web site’s part on local weather justice for extra detailed background.

And as this web site has stated for years on the local weather justice web page, the wealthy nations are delaying any significant motion till it’s finally — and disproportionately — paid for the by the growing nations. New Delhi based mostly Nitin Sethi, affiliate editor at Enterprise Normal, interviewed within the earlier talked about video says the identical factor, however extra frankly:

There isn’t any motion that’s going to occur between now and 2020. All of that was to be completed by the developed international locations. They [rich nations] principally have simply stated at Lima that we’re not going to do any greater than what we’re doing up to now, and the burden can shift onto the post-2020 period, the place different growing international locations need to share it. So, to me, it signifies actually negotiation in dangerous religion.

Nitin Sethi, Emissions-Slicing Deal Reached at COP 20 Lima, However Will It Assist Stop Catastrophic Local weather Change?, Democracy Now!, December 15, 2014

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Extra data

Because the convention continues to be underway as this web page is written, extra data can be added right here after the occasion is over.

For extra in regards to the points from different organizations, listed here are some beginning factors:

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Information tales from IPS

Beneath is a listing of tales from Inter Press Service associated to the Lima local weather convention and its aftermath.

  1. Germanys Local weather Envoy Talks Partnerships with SIDS; Urges G20 Nations to Step Up Emissions Reductions