Article**: Oceans and Wetlands.
On December 13, 2023, the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which failed to reach an agreement at the scheduled time, finally came to an end after long and continuous negotiations. Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, then spoke at noon local time and responded to a number of key and sensitive issues to the best of his ability. The speech and **Q&A are briefly translated as follows for the reader's reference:
I don't know if it's day or night, I'm not even sure what day it is.
But first of all, I would like to thank the international community for the important role it has played in this process.
As I said in plenary, we need a global green light to show that all systems are moving towards renewable energy, climate justice, and resilience.
In this regard, some significant progress was made at COP28:
Triple renewable energy and double energy efficiency.
Operational loss and damage** and an initial commitment payment.
Framework for the global adaptation goals.
I'll leave the comments and analysis of all this to yourselves.
Suffice it to say that many of the initiatives announced here are a lifeline for climate action, not a finish line.
What I'm interested in is seeing those commitments translate into outcomes in the real economy, turning theory into reality in the real economy.
COP28 also needs to send a signal of a resolute end to humanity's core climate problem – fossil fuels and the pollution caused by burning the planet.
While we haven't fully turned the pages of the fossil fuel era in Dubai, this is clearly the beginning of the end.
At every stage, climate action must go hand in hand with human development, dignity and opportunities for all.
We have listened to the concerns of Samoa and all island nations.
In their statements, island nations made it clear that this consensus was not enough to protect their people and the planet.
They received the longest applause, which is a clear indication that these views are widely shared.
I also commend this supreme ambition, as I did in the plenary, and I also note that we are currently on track to warm by less than 3 percent. This will still cause great human suffering, which is why COP28 needs to continue to move forward.
The text leaves a lot of room for interpretation. You've heard the comments of the U.S. climate envoy that the U.S. is committed to the most ambitious interpretation of the text.
If no state does so, the loopholes in the text leave us vulnerable to a vested interest in fossil fuels, which could undermine our ability to protect people around the world from the growing impacts of the climate.
Transparency and accountability of the people are essential to fill these gaps.
This agreement is a lower ambition, not a ceiling, so it is important to continue to raise ambition and climate action in the critical years ahead.
That's why we will continue our work to bring the Paris Agreement into full force. We're rolling up our sleeves. We still have a lot of work to do.
By early 2025, countries must make new nationally determined contributions.
Every commitment – on financing, adaptation and mitigation – must bring us together with 15 worlds are consistent.
[Q&A session].
I'd be happy to answer a few questions.
Q: Do you really believe that, with all the scientific knowledge you know and all the expertise of the United Nations, this is enough to keep our temperature rise at 17 Below?
A: That's enough to make 15 Remain within reach, but only if all countries, all actors, live up to their commitments and follow the policy prescription of the Global Stocktake, which highlights the importance that enables us to close the gap and ensure that 15 All elements and tools of the objective.
Q: Regarding what you said on the first day [1], what do you think (the current progress) is the baby walking, walking, or running?
AAs I said in the [Plenary Hall], we need a green light, not a yellow light. So there's still a lot of work to be done, but the way forward exists. There are signals, very, very clear signals of how we have to move forward.
Q: Thank you for all the work you do. Now the elephant in the room is being dealt with, or rather the elephant in the room is being solved. After the next meeting of the Conference of the Parties, how will the Convention Secretariat commit itself to working with other Parties, particularly on climate finance?
AWe have a North Star guideline, which is the guiding principles set out in the Paris Agreement. Our role is to act as stewards and custodians to ensure that the direction indicated in these provisions is implemented, working with all parties to ensure that they meet their commitments and contribute to climate action.
Q: When a group is absent from a meeting, is it still considered consensus?【2】
A: I'm sorry, I didn't hear that.
Q: When a group is absent from a meeting, is it still considered consensus?
A: There was no objection to what was put forward, so an agreement had been reached.
Note
1] In his opening remarks at COP28, Simon Stiell said: "We are walking the path of humanity's climate action today at the pace of a baby. This is our hottest time, and records are constantly being broken at the cost of human life and health.
2] The final outcome document of the conference, the UAE Consensus, was adopted in the absence of small island developing States.
The scene of the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference. Photo by Dr. Edoardo Monaco. Green Society: Oceans and Wetlands.
Compiler: richard
Review: Daisy
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