Climate Vulnerable Forum seeks review of UN climate targets

PARIS - A group of climate vulnerable countries led by the Philippines has formally asked the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) to review its targets, believing these are not enough to address global warming.

The Climate Vulnerable Forum, a partnership of 20 countries affected by climate change, called for the lowering of the UNFCCC’s temperature goal to 1.5 degrees Celsius from 2 degrees, saying this would ensure the survival of some nations.

“Review sends a clear message that the current long-term temperature goal of holding global warming below 2 degrees Celsius is inadequate and that it is essential that this target is strengthened towards a below 1.5°C goal,” the group said in the Manila-Paris joint declaration adopted during the 21st Conference of Parties to the UNFCC (COP 21) here.

“We urge the UNFCCC Conference of Parties to heed the 2013 to 2015 Review into the adequacy of the current long-term temperature goal of holding global warming below a 2 degrees Celsius increase above pre-industrial levels,” it added.

The Philippines is the chairman of the Climate Vulnerable Forum or V20 composed of Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Maldives, Tanzania, Bangladesh, Ghana, Nepal, Timor-Leste, Barbados, Kenya, Tuvalu, Bhutan, Kiribati, Rwanda, Vanuatu, Costa Rica, Madagascar, Saint Lucia and Vietnam.

The V20 said the target to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees above the pre-industrial level by 2100 should be included in the climate agreement to be forged in COP 21.

“Immediate measures to strengthen the goal to the below 1.5 degrees Celsius target are indispensable to the integrity of the ultimate objective of the UNFCCC, the survival of a number of our nations, and the prosperity of our populations, people everywhere,” V20 said.  

The group is also advocating a climate agreement that would mention the full decarbonization of the world economy and 100 percent renewable energy production by 2050.

“The agreement being negotiated for adoption in Paris at COP21 must require no back-sliding and a progression of commitments to avoid developments regressive towards achieving the long-term goal,” the V20 said.  

Negotiators from more than 140 countries are now in this city to discuss a climate deal that aims to address the impact of climate change, which has been linked to extreme weather conditions and more frequent and more intense natural disasters.

The changes in the climate have been attributed to greenhouse gas emissions produced by human activities. Some sectors, however, doubt the connection between emissions and climate change and decried what they called as “climate alarmism” that favors the interests of green technology and renewable energy investors.

Some critics are also wary about the possible impact of a climate deal on the industries heavily dependent on coal and their workers.

Leaders of V20, however, disputed this and claimed that emission reduction could even lead to economic development.

"Emission cuts harming economic growth is a myth. A commitment to reduce emissions is most likely a commitment to strengthen economic growth…Keeping warming to a minimum to below 1.5 degrees won't simply deliver safety and prosperity, it will also deliver justice," said Costa Rica foreign affairs minister Manuel Gonzalez.

“We refuse to be the sacrifice of the international community in Paris. Anything that takes our survival off the table here is a red line. All parties have an obligation to act. Not doing so is a crime,” said Bangladesh environment minister Anwar Hossain Manju.

The V20 also lamented that the goals in the emission reduction plans or Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) submitted by countries are not enough to limit warming below the current target of two degrees.  

The group said “further substantial action” would be needed to close the gap between the INDCs total level of ambition and the emission pathways consistent with the 1.5 degrees goal.

To achieve its goals, the V20 has set a target of $20-billion new investment in climate action by 2020 with focus on regional, domestic and private sector mobilization.

“We are convinced that the V20 has its role to play in helping to unlock the full potential of climate finance as we look to a new international partnership for moving our effort forward,” Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima said during a V20 high-level meeting last Monday.

“We will work in this context to take steps to enable our economies to benefit from $20 billion in new and additional finance by 2020, drawing from international, regional and domestic sources, and leveraging maximum degrees of private finance,” he added.

The V20 also highlighted the importance of including loss and damage in the Paris climate deal, saying this would establish options for compensating affected populations

The group said international efforts for addressing loss and damage should include a mechanism that would comply with the Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damage, a displacement coordination facility that would assist people affected by extreme weather events, and a financing process.

The V20 also adopted a three-year road map of activities aimed at enhancing cooperation among and protection for the climate vulnerable countries.

PNoy calls for global bayanihan

During the V20 meeting, President Aquino called for a global “bayanihan” to address the impact of climate change, saying no amount of effort by a single country is enough to solve the problem.

Aquino said the Philippines has been tapping bayanihan to promote national transformation, institute good governance and create an inclusive and compassionate society.

“In the Philippines, we have as one of our core philosophies the idea of “bayanihan.” Loosely translated, it means communal action borne of communal responsibility,” Aquino said.

“This spirit of bayanihan, dear colleagues, is exactly the same spirit that informs the Climate Vulnerable Forum. It is also at the core of what we launch today: the Manila-Paris Declaration, which embodies our shared aspirations for a world that is more just and more sustainable,” he added.

Aquino said all members of the Climate Vulnerable Forum are already survivors and can become a collective “force towards a fairer, more climate-proactive world”.

Doubts

However, there are doubts as to whether the V-20 could come up with a coordinated action during the climate negotiations.

UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres, who was present during the V20 meet, said she does not see all the V20 members “working in an articulated and coordinated fashion for this Paris agreement.”

“I very much appreciate that you are already looking beyond Paris because we are going to have an agreement. But it is the countries around this table and many others outside that are going to determine whether we have an ambitious agreement or whether we just have an agreement,”  Figueres said.

“And that difference is the key difference for all of you and for many others who are outside. It’s a pretty simple equation. The quality of the Paris agreement, peoples; the quality of life for the most vulnerable…That is the stark challenge that brings us here together in Paris,” she added.  

Figueres ended her remarks during the forum by citing a statement of French President Francois Hollande who said: “The danger is not to aim too high and fail, the danger is to aim too low and only do that.”