The Paris Agreement on Climate Change as a Development Agenda - Wonders Pibowei

Our senior partner, Wonders Pibowei has been offered a place in "The Paris Agreement on Climate Change as a Development Agenda" Course, which runs from 16 May to 24 June 2022 with the United Nations Climate Change and United Nations System Staff College. He joined 902 changemakers from all over the world, in leading the climate change transition for a better working world, where youth startups, listed corporations, fragile nations, failed states and future generations can thrive.

2019 was the second warmest year on record and the end of the warmest decade (2010- 2019) ever recorded. Carbon dioxide (CO2) levels and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere rose to new records in 2019. Climate change is affecting every country on every continent. It is disrupting national economies and affecting lives. Weather patterns are changing, sea levels are rising, and weather events are becoming more extreme.

Although greenhouse gas emissions are projected to drop about 6 per cent in 2020 due to travel bans and economic slowdowns resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, this improvement is only temporary. Climate change is not on pause. Once the global economy begins to recover from the pandemic, emissions are expected to return to higher levels. Saving lives and livelihoods requires urgent action to address both the pandemic and the climate emergency.

As countries move toward rebuilding their economies after COVID-19, recovery plans can shape the 21st century economy in ways that are clean, green, healthy, safe and more resilient. The current crisis is an opportunity for a profound, systemic shift to a more sustainable economy that works for both people and the planet. The UN Secretary-General proposed six climate-positive actions for governments to take once they go about building back their economies and societies:

1) Green transition: Investments must accelerate the decarbonization of all aspects of our economy.

2) Green jobs and sustainable and inclusive growth

3) Green economy: making societies and people more resilient through a transition that is fair to all and leaves no one behind.

4) Invest in sustainable solutions: fossil fuel subsidies must end and polluters must pay for their pollution.

5) Confront all climate risks

6) Cooperation – no country can succeed alone.

To address the climate emergency, post-pandemic recovery plans need to trigger long-term systemic shifts that will change the trajectory of CO2 levels in the atmosphere. Governments around the world have spent considerable time and effort in recent years to develop plans to chart a safer and more sustainable future for their citizens. Taking these on board now as part of recovery planning can help the world build back better from the current crisis.

Climate change is therefore a cross-cutting development issue that affects every aspect of sustainable development, according to United Nations. We already have a common framework for action – the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate change - an ambitious plan of action which requires all countries and stakeholders to act together.

Both agendas, form the most comprehensive blueprint to date for eliminating extreme poverty, reducing inequality, and protecting the planet. Together with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, these documents constitute an integral plan of action for people, planet, and prosperity that requires all countries and stakeholders to act together. Sustainable development and climate action are deeply interconnected and interdependent. For example:

1) Ending poverty is not possible where the lives and livelihoods of vulnerable populations are disrupted by climate change-induced impacts;

2) Peaceful and inclusive societies cannot be attained if climate change catalyzes the displacement of people and increases the risk of violent conflicts through amplification of already existing drivers, such as loss of natural resources;

3) Achieving zero-hunger is not possible without protecting food systems from the negative impacts of climate change;

4) Cities and communities cannot be sustainable without adequate protection from extreme weather events;

5) Ensuring children’s health is not possible without addressing air pollution and the increase in climate change-driven, vector-borne diseases;

6) Economic development cannot be sustainable without reversing over-reliance on carbon-intensive energy sources.

With 197 Parties, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has near universal membership and is the parent treaty of the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement. The main aim of the Paris Agreement is to keep a global average temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius and to drive efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The UNFCCC is also the parent treaty of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. The ultimate objective of all agreements under the UNFCCC is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that will prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system, in a time frame which allows ecosystems to adapt naturally and enables sustainable development.

The joined climate change course offered by United Nations Climate Change and United Nations System Staff College, frames climate change and climate action around the five core cornerstones of the 2030 Agenda: People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Partnership. It offers a holistic and integrated approach to climate change and demonstrates the interlinkages and interdependencies between sustainable development and climate change to make informed policy choices towards low-carbon and climate resilient sustainable development.

ABOUT WONDERS PIBOWEI

The CEO at Lowase Management Consulting, Dean at LMC School of Practice, and Host of 2022 Truecaller Leadership Fellows Programme, with a vision of a better working nation for Africa by Africans. Has 10 years track record of accelerating investment and educational opportunities for young talents or startups across value chains. He is a Doctoral Fellow in Taxation at Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, was awarded Master Degree in Financial Accounting at Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Postgraduate Diploma in National Health Laboratory System at Empower School of Health Geneva, Bachelor Degree in Accountancy at Renaissance University Enugu, with credentials in management and technology.

He is a Focal Point at UNCTAD African Regional Partnership for Sustainability and SDG Reporting, Member of UNDP Stockholm +50 National Consultations, Member of UNDP Gender Equality Strategy 2022-2025 Group, Member of UNDP Integrated Policy Practitioners Network, Member of UNDP Coalition for Digital Environmental Sustainability, Moderator of CFA Institute Program Learning Ecosystem, Member of CFA Institute Practice Analysis Working Body, Member of Chatham House Common Futures Conversations in Africa, MTCP Fellow at The Embassy of Malaysia Abuja, and Member of Wiley Business Accounting Finance Advisory Panel.

Served as a Judge at 2022 Kellogg Morgan Stanley Sustainable Investing Challenge, VC Mentor to FASTEMS Social Bond at University of Virginia Darden School of Business, GCP Judge at 2021 Google Africa Developer Scholarship, Cybercrime Policy Fellow at 2022 Chatham House International Security Programme, Edward Jenner Leadership Fellow of NHS Leadership Academy, Covid19 Programme Fellow of Health Education England, Board Advisor for 2021 Acumen/IKEA East Africa Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator Program, GCP Fellow at 2020 Google Africa Developer Scholarship Program, and Senior Education Officer with Success Palace Academy.

A Professional Member of APGM International, Institute for New Economic Thinking, Public Private Partnership Association of India, Project Management Institute, Association for Project Management, Royal Society of Statistics, American Statistics Association, American Finance Association, American Management Association, Institute of Management Accountant, British Accounting & Finance Association, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, and International Association of Accounting Education & Research.

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