UN Insider

Photo: Idyllic Pacific Islands threatened by rising sea levels. Credit: Kalinga Seneviratne

COP 27: The World's Rich Urged to Pay Reparations for Climate Damage

By Kalinga Seneviratne

SINGAPORE (IDN) — At COP 27 in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El Sheikh, the Global South led by Asia and the South Pacific (as well as Africa) are demanding that nature rights and climatic justice be recognized as a human right and COP (Conference of Parties) process go beyond pledges for climatic change mitigation.

And this by agreeing to look into a binding agreement for financial reparations from the rich for the damage done by climatic change, as evidenced in 2021 by floods, cyclones and heat waves hitting the most economically vulnerable countries.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 07 November 2022

Photo: Droughts affect the availability of water in communities. Credit: Busani Bafani.

COP27: A Win for Loss and Damage

By Busani Bafana

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt (IDN) — After much horse-trading, loss and damage is on the agenda at the COP27 raising expectations of an agreement for funding to promote resilience and address longer-term impacts of climate change.

For the first time since the adoption of the UN climate convention, the contentious issue of loss and damage made it onto the agenda after tumultuous 48 hours of informal consultations led by the Egyptian COP Presidency.

: Africa & ME Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 07 November 2022

Photo: Reteti Rescue Team rescuing an orphaned elephant from a mountain, so remote and unreachable by road or air. Source: Retiti.org

As Die-Off of Kenyan Wildlife Spikes, No End Seen to Punishing Drought

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK | NAIROBI (IDN) — A new report titled "Impacts of the current drought on wildlife in Kenya" by Wildlife Research and Training Institute gives a devastating picture of the high mortality of wildlife across the East African nation whose animal kingdom has been the backbone of tourism for years.

Images from the region show feeble cows with ribcages protruding from their sides. According to the Kenya News Agency, herders are calling on the county and national government to buy meat from them as they lose their livestock to an unprecedented drought.

: Global Information Network; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 07 November 2022

Photo: Alexandria’s flooded Corniche on 25 October 2015. Credit: Asmaa Abdelatif/Youm7.

UN Climate Panel Warns of Sea ‘Swallowing’ Alexandria and Other Historic Cities

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — The Egyptian coastal resort of Sharm el-Sheikh is brimming with delegates, organizers and observers - here to take part in the UN Climate Conference, better known by its acronym “COP27” (Conference of the Parties).

This year’s conference will be an "African COP" where the positions of African countries on issues like finance for adapting to climate change or adopting renewable energy sources will be central to the talks.

: Global Information Network; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 07 November 2022

Photo: Climate Strike by Students. Source: Global Information Network

Egyptian Civil Rights Activists View COP27 as a Carefully Managed Theatre

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK | SHARM EL-SHEIKH (IDN) — Some civil rights activists suspect this year’s UN climate conference, held in a country reputed for holding thousands of political prisoners, will give the host country a great opportunity to remake its image and position itself as the voice for the Global South.

In fact, Egypt is facing a barrage of criticism over what rights groups say is a crackdown on protests and activists.

: Global Information Network; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 07 November 2022

UN’s Development Goals are Not Far Behind COP27

By Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — When the two-weeklong COP27 climate summit began negotiations November 6, the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were not far behind.

At the conference centre in the Egyptian coastal town of Sharm el-Sheikh, the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) is hosting an SDG Pavilion for interactive dialogues and discussions on key SDG thematic areas, particularly clean energy, water, forests, the ocean, and climate synergies—all of which will be on the forefront of the climate summit.

: Thalif Deen; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 06 November 2022

COP 27: An 'Implementation COP' To Save People and the Planet

By Meena Raman

The author is a Senior Researcher at the Third World Network in Penang, Malaysia.

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt (IDN) — The annual climate conference under the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement kicked off in the Egyptian coastal resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh on November 6.

: UN Bureau; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 06 November 2022

Photo: The UN Security Council meets on the situation in Ukraine, 27 February 2022. UN Photo/Loey Felipe

Ukraine: The Russian Nuke Threat

Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte

The writer is a former High Representative of the United Nations for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA), and President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs.

NEW YORK (IDN) — The conflict between Russia and Ukraine, described by Moscow as a “special military operation”, entered its eighth month without an end in sight, and there is no sign of willingness among the parties involved to start serious negotiations that might lead to a cease-fire followed by arrangements for a durable peace.

: Sergio Duarte; ARMAMENTS; Nuclear Weapons; 02 November 2022

Image: A drone used by the US Air Force. Credit: USAF

Drone Warfare: The Battlefield of the Future

By Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The deployment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)—more commonly known as drones—largely by US and Russian military forces has highlighted a weapon that is being increasingly deployed in war zones in the Middle East, Asia, Africa and most recently Ukraine.

: Thalif Deen; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 02 November 2022

Photo: H.H. Param Pujya Swami Adrishya Kadsiddeshwar Ji of Kaneri Math (right) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India.

Panch Mahabhoot, Climate Change and UN SDGs

Viewpoint by Manish Uprety F.R.A.S.

The writer is an ex-diplomat and Special Adviser for Asia & Africa of ALCAP, the Latin American Parliamentary Association of Audio-Visual Communication. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of IDN InDepth News.

NEW DELHI (IDN) — Bad news first. The world is almost on the edge of an irreversible climate breakdown notes the UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report 2022.