Humanity has made significant strides in the fight against global warming, yet remains on a “disastrously high” trajectory of temperature rise, the UN Climate Chief declared at the opening of pre-COP29 negotiations in Bonn, Germany.
Without the negotiations led under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) since 1992, “we would be condemned to a global warming scenario of up to 5 degrees, which most of humanity would probably not survive,” Simon Stiell affirmed while launching two weeks of technical negotiations to prepare for the 29th COP in Baku, Azerbaijan, in November.
Currently, “we are heading towards an increase of about 2.7°C,” the UNFCCC Executive Secretary emphasized.
However, “this trajectory is still disastrously high, and there is a long way to go to reach our common goal of 1.5 degrees this century,” the most ambitious target of the Paris Agreement, he added, addressing diplomats from some 200 countries, whose discussions are scheduled until June 13 at the UN Climate headquarters in Bonn.
Therefore, “climate action must move much faster,” he declared.
The Challenge of Climate Finance
Diplomats gather annually in June in Bonn to resolve the most sensitive points of international climate negotiations, so that political leaders can reach agreements at the Conference of the Parties (COP) at the end of the year.
This year, the main question revolves around money: how much should rich countries pay to help developing countries abandon fossil fuels and cope with climate change?
In 2009, rich countries, the main historical culprits of greenhouse gas emissions, pledged to reach the round figure of $100 billion in annual aid by 2020.
The target was reached in 2022 for the first time.
Despite this, COP29 is expected to conclude with an agreement on the target beyond 2025, but there is no consensus on the amount or the destination of the funds.
Donors, mainly Western countries and Japan, are criticized for granting more loans than subsidies, while their calls for contributions from prosperous emerging economies, such as China and the Gulf countries, are met with negative reactions.
The Road Ahead: Raising Climate Ambitions
Countries are expected to present enhanced climate targets (NDCs) by early 2025. Meanwhile, some developing countries want to condition their decarbonization efforts on the release of public aid from rich countries.