The 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) is taking place in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt from 6-18 November 2022. To mark the occasion, Unravel Carbon’s sustainability team shares their hopes and expectations for COP27.
Isabel Loh - Senior Sustainability Consultant
This year’s COP27 takes place against a backdrop of extreme weather events, a world struggling with COVID recovery, rising energy prices fueled by the war in Ukraine, and tense geopolitical relations between major powers.
It certainly won’t be easy, but nevertheless, I hope that there will still be fruitful outcomes from the negotiations and more focus on the implementation of the Paris Rulebook.
In particular, working in the carbon management space, I look forward to greater clarity on Article 6, which sets the rules for an international compliance carbon market, thus allowing countries to work together to achieve their respective emission reduction targets.
It is necessary to mitigate the risk of double-counting in corresponding adjustments, to have consistent and easily understood reporting frameworks, and operationalize a mechanism registry that adheres to the highest standards of transparency.
This is key to helping to foster the clean energy transition, and allowing us to meet the global net zero goal by 2050.
No time to lose, let’s go!
Rebekah Süsserott - Decarbonization Solutions Manager
The conversations happening around climate change at each COP are incredibly important and having some of the most influential people in the world gather to discuss the best courses of action presents a real opportunity.
However, we have seen that COPs so far have underdelivered on what is needed to keep the world within 1.5 to 2.0°C warming. The recent UNEP Emission Gap Report reported little progress in reducing the emissions gap for 2030 since COP26, and we are in fact on track for between 2.4 and 2.8°C warming based on countries’ NDCs.
In the last year, we have seen record temperatures in countries such as India, Europe, the US, and China as well as records for wildfire destruction and worst recorded floods. Hopefully, with impacts increasingly being felt across the globe and a fuel crisis making business as normal prohibitively expensive, we will see decisions made with the urgency that is required.
I hope to see more aggressive targets with plans set out over shorter timeframes, as well as increased funding from developed countries to developing countries and mechanisms to guarantee that this is indeed delivered on time.
Nhu Truong - Decarbonization Analyst
As COP27 is getting close, I’m excited to learn from experts their perspectives and experiences on the subject of climate change. I believe that coming from different disciplines and industries, they will give us a rich, thorough, and comprehensive view of the issues.
From that, we all can be at a better standpoint to look back and evaluate our progress as well as to look forward and explore how we can collaborate and make greater impacts together.
Qiyun Woo - Sustainability Consultant
It’s been about 27 years since the first UNFCCC COP talks to reduce our global emissions, but we have really seen the physical, economic and social impact of the climate crisis in the last few years.
Operating in Asia-Pacific, the climate injustice and inequality is apparent. Our green transition cannot leave anyone behind and this looks like climate financing to developing countries that are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis.
At COP27, I also look forward to greater ambition from countries to deliver on stronger climate targets. The NDC Synthesis Report shows us that our targets are heading towards a 2.8-degree world and the Emissions Gap Reports tell us something even worse.
But solutions exist, like us! I hope that COP27 creates momentum for corporations to become more proactive about their own sustainability obligations. A company of the future is one that understands carbon intimately. But this ability to manage carbon should not be reserved for those with resources but should be one made accessible to firms of all sizes with the necessary support and financing.
A post-COP27 future to me looks like one where no one gets left behind.
Brenda Teo - Sustainability Consultant
Yet another conference on climate change, what’s so different about COP27? With the slew of climate talks and conferences in recent years and most with no actionable outcomes, people are getting jaded with yet another conference. As a sustainability consultant at a climate tech company, I certainly experienced the roller coaster ride of hopes and disappointment.
However, how else are we able to publicly pressure rich countries into making serious financial commitments towards the fight against climate change? Touted as the biggest and most important annual climate-related conference on the planet, the hope is that at COP27, governments will be pinned with actionable plans like pledging a budget with a timeline to accelerate the fight against climate change. Hopefully, this will send a serious note that will ripple across the business community to pivot their efforts to saving future generations from the adverse effects of climate change.
Unravel Carbon is participating in COP27. Follow us on LinkedIn for live updates.
