1. COP27: First time Compensating poor countries for climate disasters
Tags: Environment Summits International News
The 27th Conference of the Parties 9COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (COP27) is being held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt on 31 October to 13 November 2022.
Important facts
In this, various countries have agreed to provide financial assistance to poor countries to deal with the loss and damage caused by climate change.
The participating countries agreed on a 20-point provisional agenda.
What is Loss and Damage?
It refers to the economic and non-economic impacts of climate change, including extreme events in countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.
The demand for loss and damages is quite old, but it has faced strong resistance from rich and developed countries.
The term was introduced in 1991 as a demand by the island country of Vanuatu, representing the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).
What is Conference of Parties (COP)?
The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the 'Earth Summit', was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 3-14 June 1992.
The conference focused on the impact of human socio-economic activities on the environment.
The countries assembled here agreed to work together to deal with issues of sustainable development and climate change .
The Rio Earth summit agreed to create the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) where the member countries can discuss issues related to global warming and climate change and take steps to deal with these problems .
It entered into force on 21 March 1994, and has been ratified by 197 countries and territories .
The countries which has ratified the UNFCCC are called as Parties
Every year they meet to discuss climate change related issues . These meetings are called Conference of Parties(COP) .
The first COP was held in 1995 in Berlin, Germany .
2. Union Environment minister Bhupendra Yadav to lead Indian delegation at the COP27 meeting in Egypt
Tags: Environment place in news Summits
Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav will be leading the Indian delegation to attend the 27th Session of Conference of Parties of the UNFCCC (COP 27) scheduled to be held at Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt from 6-18 November, 2022. The last , COP 26 was held in Glasgow, United Kingdom from 31 October to 13 November 2021.
The COP 27 conference is being organized by the Bonn, Germany based United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) with Egypt being the host country.
Agenda of the conference
The COP 27 will focus on delivering action on a number of issues critical to tackling the climate emergency like;
- urgently reducing greenhouse gas emissions,
- building resilience and adapting to the inevitable impacts of climate change, and
- delivering on the commitments to finance climate action in developing countries.
The theme of the COP 27 is Delivering for People and Planet.
What is Conference of Parties (COP)?
- The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the 'Earth Summit', was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 3-14 June 1992. The conference focused on the impact of human socio-economic activities on the environment. The countries assembled here agreed to work together to deal with issues of sustainable development and climate change .
- The Rio Earth summit agreed to create the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) where the member countries can discuss issues related to global warming and climate change and take steps to deal with these problems .
- It entered into force on 21 March 1994, and has been ratified by 197 countries and territories .
- The countries which has ratified the UNFCCC are called as Parties
- Every year they meet to discuss climate change related issues . These meetings are called Conference of Parties(COP) .
- The first COP was held in 1995 in Berlin, Germany .
- The next COP 27 will be held in Sharm el-Sheikh ,Egypt in 2022.
3. India’s per capita Greenhouse gas emissions below world average: UNEP
Tags: Environment
According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)report “Emissions Gap Report 2022: The Closing Window”, India’s per capita greenhouse gas emissions were far below the world’s average per capita greenhouse emission average (including land use, land-use change, and forestry—LULUCF) of 6.3 tCO2e (tonne carbon dioxide equivalent) in 2020.
The report released on 27 October 2022 said that India’s average greenhouse gas emission was 2.4 tCO2e (tonne carbon dioxide equivalent) in 2020.
Highest per capita emitter of greenhouse gasses
The highest per capita emission was of the United States of America at 14 tCO2e, followed by 13 tCO2e in the Russian Federation, 9.7 tCO2e in China, about 7.5 tCO2e in Brazil and Indonesia, and 7.2 tCO2e in the European Union.
India’s contribution to historical cumulative CO2 emissions (excluding LULUCF) is three per cent, whereas the US and the EU have contributed 25 per cent and 17 per cent respectively to total fossil CO2 emissions from 1850 to 2019.
China contributed 13 per cent, the Russian Federation seven per cent, and Indonesia and Brazil one per cent each. Least developed countries contributed only 0.5 per cent to historical CO2 fossil fuel .
The report has been released by the UNEP on the eve of the UN Climate Change conference (COP27) in Egypt next month. The report said that the International community is still far off its Paris climate summit 2015 goal of “limiting global temperature rise to below 2 degree Celsius” to the pre industrial level .
However, in absolute terms the largest emitter of greenhouse gasses in the world is China followed by the United States of America , India ,Russia and Japan .
United Nation Environment Programme (UNEP)
The United Nations Environment Programme was set up in 1972 after the United Nation Conference on Human Environment was held in Stockholm, Sweden in 1972.
In 1988 it set up Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) with World Meteorological Organisation
Headquarters : Nairobi, Kenya
Director: Inger Andersen
4. India and Sweden Host Industry Transition Dialogue In Stockholm
Tags: International Relations International News
India and Sweden hosted the Industry Transition Dialogue on 2 June in Stockholm as a part of their joint initiative, Leadership for Industry Transition (LeadIT).
The LeadIT initiative focuses on areas that are major stakeholders in global climate action and require specific interventions.
This high level dialogue has made a significant contribution to the United Nations Conference 'Stockholm+50'.
Stockholm +50 is a World Environment Assembly held on 2 and 3 June to commemorate the first United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in 1972.
It sets the agenda for COP27.
Japan and South Africa are the latest members of the initiative.
At present, the total number of LeadIT members is 37, including countries and companies.
Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav addressed the event.
He said it is a time to celebrate 50 years of collaborative action, as well as a time to introspect on what we have achieved so far and what remains to be achieved.
During the event, India chaired the Round Table Talks on priorities for implementation for 2022-23.
Countries and companies share their initiatives, success stories and plans for the future.
About Sweden
Capital - Stockholm
National Day - 6 June
Parliament - Called ‘riksdag’
Members of parliament - 349 in a single chamber
Head of state - King Carl XVI Gustaf; heir to the throne is Crown Princess Victoria
Total area - 528,447 sq km (fifth largest country in Europe)
Highest mountain - Kebnekaise (2,099 m)
Biggest lake - Vänern (5,650 sq km)
Currency - Swedish krona
