The first phase of the global match “between humanity and climate change” concluded in Glasgow. The baton is now in the hands of the negotiators. Last night British Prime Minister Boris Johnson compared the Glasgow Summit to a football match and, taking stock of the situation after a two-day round of talks with some 120 world leaders, said: “There is no doubt that progress has been made”. But “it is all too easy to get caught up in a mood of exaggerated enthusiasm”. “We must take care to guard against false hope.” There’s still a very long way to go. “There are two weeks of negotiations”, but “all that being said, I am cautiously optimistic.”
In his address to the press, the British Prime Minister listed the highlights of the summit, the most important being the commitment to protecting forests. At Cop26 in Glasgow, over one hundred world leaders – accounting for more than 86% of the world’s forests, have committed to ending and reversing deforestation by 2030, with financial pledges (including private investment) amounting to €19.2 billion. The EU – represented by the EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen – has pledged one billion, €250 million of which will be allocated to the Congo River Basin’s rainforests, the second largest ecological lung on the planet after the Amazon. US President Joe Biden announced he would ask Congress to allocate 9 billion by 2030. Other signatories include Brazil (heavily criticised for having neglected the Amazon rainforest over the past few years), Russia, China, Colombia, Indonesia, Australia and Costa Rica.
The Glasgow Summit also marked a significant achievement by increasing to over 100 (from 80) the number of countries that adhered to the Cop26 commitment to cut global methane by 30% by 2030. Those over 100 countries that constitute 70% of global economy have now endorsed the initiative launched by the EU and the US. In his statement to the press, British Prime Minister Johnson praised the presence of private donors in the fight against global warming. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the launch of the EU Catalyst Partnership, a $1 billion programme to boost investment in critical climate technologies in Europe. The programme brings together the EU, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and the European Investment Bank. Boris Johnson outlined the goal of providing $100 billion a year to the most vulnerable countries to support their green transition. This target will be reached “in 2023, but we are pushing to reach it earlier, in 2022. A major commitment has come from Japan, but greater effort is needed from other countries” to achieve this goal. “We will continue to apply pressure.”
“Climate change is not some parochial political issue,” said the British PM. “For tens of millions of people around the world, it is a matter of life or death.” That is why he tells the climate negotiators starting their work as of today to “keep moving forward” avoiding “U-turns”. “My message to them is very simple – the leaders of the world may have left or are leaving COP now, but the eyes of the world are on you, eyes of the British government and all the other governments that care about this.”
The promises made over the past two days “must be followed up with real action”, Johnson said. He warned that the UK government would be keeping a close eye on the negotiations to make sure there was no backtracking on what had been said.
The messages of world religious leaders reached Glasgow. The Pope sent a message that was read out by the Vatican’s Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin. “All too many of our brothers and sisters are suffering from this climate crisis. The lives of countless people, particularly those who are most vulnerable, have experienced its increasingly frequent and devastating effects. At the same time, we have come to realize that it also involves a crisis of children’s rights and that, in the near future, environmental migrants will be more numerous than refugees from war and conflicts.” The Holy Father made a strong appeal: “Now is the time to act, urgently, courageously and responsibly. Not least, to prepare a future in which our human family will be in a position to care for itself and for the natural environment.” The Pope’s voice was joined by that of the Grand Imam of al-Azhar, Ahmad al-Tayyeb:
“There is no alternative to shared responsibility and solidarity to mitigate climate change. This is the responsibility we all hold towards future generations”.
