“We are in this together and the only way to solve it is to work together” The Global Commission on Adaptation speaks out at COP24 in Katowice
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limate adaptation is a global issue requiring a global response was the message from The Global Commission on Adaptation at this year’s COP in Katowice in Poland. Through events held in partnership with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Global Environmental Facility our Commissioners discussed the importance of accelerating climate adaptation while addressing barriers to inaction and the resilience benefits that result from accelerated adaptation action and support.Our Commissioners shared insights on how mainstreaming adaptation can improve lives, reduce poverty and enhance resilience as well as how to unlock public and private finance to benefit from the results adaptation brings – namely job creation, poverty reduction and greater equity and environmental protections.
Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary UNFCC opened the afternoon High Level Panel on Acceleration Action and Support for Adaptation with remarks around how adaptation and resilience are essential and the Global Commission on Adaptation can support parties in planning, implementing and monitoring adaptation plans. Her remarks were echoed by Minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen, Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management in the Netherlands, who stressed that climate adaptation is not a luxury but a necessity and more needed to be done to raise awareness.
Emma Howard Boyd, Chair of UK Environment Agency spoke with Jay Koh, Managing Director of the Lightsmith Group about how adaptation should be embedded in all aspects of finance including pension funding and infrastructure investment.
Similarly, Nao Ishii, CEO and Chairperson of the Global Environmental Facility noted we should think more about a systems approach with more international cooperation to spur private sector involvement.
Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, remarked that the UNFCC has developed the first plan of gender-responsive action but more needed to be done to push implementation at the country level and to link it to other UN initiatives like the 2030 goals.
Fekadu Beyene, Commissioner, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Commission of Ethiopia spoke passionately about how the price of inaction is human lives and that is the people in countries like his who are the most vulnerable and will suffer the consequences of our changing climate the most.
The message from our Commissioners was clear – the world needs to mount a response to climate change at a speed and scale necessary to deliver transformational change. The response must be comprehensive and integrated approaches are needed to address the urgency, scale and breadth of the climate challenge. Addressing these three aspects of adaptation requires tackling systemic challenges, enhancing engagement with local stakeholders and private sector and strengthening institutional capacity at all governance levels.
