One Earth One Family One Future: Post COP-27 - Climate Suicide, or Is There Hope?

It has been about a month since COP-27 ended. COP-27 did deliver the much needed “Loss & Damage Fund” for vulnerable countries, but otherwise showed limited progress - no agreement on greater cuts to greenhouse gas emissions or an end to fossil fuel use - which all but ensures that we are on track for a 2.5 degree centigrade increase in temperature by 2100. And all this despite the sincere request (and warning) from UN Secretary General Antonio Gueterres on the opening day not to “... hurtle towards a climate disaster with our foot firmly on the accelerator”!?

The “One Earth One Family One Future” phrase in the headline is borrowed from the 2023 G20 theme (which in turn is an extract from the ancient Sanskrit text of the Maha Upanishad).

The 27 years from the 1st COP (conference of the parties) in 1995 till COP-27 in 2022 have shown some commitments, a few areas of progress, but also lots of unresolved debates despite the annual COP meetings, and really shown very limited outcomes and engendered little confidence in our multilateral institutions!?

Just because this climate pandemic does not stare us in the face like COVID-19 did, our resolve is half-hearted and our responses are non-existent. Bill Gates’ and John Doerr’s thoughtful analyses are widely read and discussed, and we hope are being adopted and implemented in some ways. Clearly, something needs to change dramatically!

As we look forward to the New Year 2023 and over the next few weeks and coming months, let’s share our assessments, points of views, plans and ideas - and ways to action these through our institutions. Individual action is great but is not going to be enough!

First we did not know

We then listened a bit and started the COP

Then we did not agree

And when we did agree, we pointed fingers at each other

Next we did not budget

Then we fought about budgets … which rich country should pay for which poor country

At the same time, we did not really know how to deliver on these budgets

Nor did we know how to measure progress to budget

Sometimes we did know how to deliver, but chose not to since it was maybe too expensive?

Other times we were just clueless

Then we thought we’d ask our kids for help

And all this while the world was burning while we were fiddling around ..

HOW CAN WE CREATE AN ALTERNATIVE NARRATIVE?

#climateaction #sustainability #saveourplanet