Swamp Stomp
Volume 17, Issue 48
Diplomats, government representatives and members of civil society convened in Bonn, Germany from November 6th to 17th to attend the twenty-third annual UN Climate Change Conference, or COP23.
The purpose of the conference, presided over by Prime Minister of Fiji, Frank Bainimarama, is to showcase how UN member states have been implementing solutions to meet the climate change mitigation objectives laid out by the Paris Climate Change agreements of 2015, as well as to build further collaborations between governments, private organizations and communities in reaching the goals of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable Development, which includes climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies.
During his opening speech, Prime Minister Bainimarama emphasized the dire need for international cooperation in addressing climate change, saying “we must preserve the global consensus for decisive action enshrined in the Paris Agreement and aim for the most ambitious part of that target – to limit the global average temperature rise to 1.5 degrees above the pre-industrial age.”
As President of the conference, Bainimarama and the Fijian delegates, as well as other members of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), have emphasized the particular plight small island nations face as the effects of climate change grow, from more frequent and powerful storms to sea level rise submerging large swaths of low-lying territory and salinizing sources of fresh water.
For many such islands, including Fiji, more than just natural resources and land are at stake of being lost to rising oceans; coastal villages that have been inhabited by humans for hundreds and sometimes thousands of years are often home to ancestral burial sites that have significant religious and culture meaning to the living. As small islands take steps to relocate these villages to higher ground, this connection between people and their land is compromised, if not lost altogether.
Sailosi Ramatu, headmen of the recently relocated Fijian village of Vunidogoloa, told E&E news that “we cherish our culture and religions in the village and [those are] two main things that we continue to teach our children today, as it is what we will be known for.”
While internal relocation remains an option for island nations with higher ground to move to, lower-lying islands, such as the Maldives in the Indian Ocean and Kiribati in the Pacific, face the stark choice of fortifying their islands against the tides or leaving their homelands altogether.
The Maldives, whose islands average a mere 1.5 meters above sea level, is opting for the former choice, selecting some of their islands to be buttressed by sea walls and artificially constructing others. In 2014, Kiribati made plans for the latter, buying 8 square miles of land from Fiji in the event of mass evacuations. “We would hope not to put everyone on [this one] piece of land but if it became absolutely necessary, yes, we could do it” then President of Kiribati Anote Tong told the Associated Press.
Due to the financial burden climate change is expected to impose upon less developed countries, wealthier countries during the Paris Climate Change agreements agreed to provide 100 billion US dollars towards funding adaptation in less developed countries. While this is a non-binding agreement, evidenced by President Trump’s removal of the United States from the agreements earlier this year, countries like China and Germany have continued to fund adaptation and mitigation strategies in poorer countries.
At the beginning of the conference in Bonn, Germany pledged 50 million euros to the Least Developed Countries Fund as well as an additional 50 million euros to the Adaptation Fund, making it the largest donor to the Adaptation Fund. Commenting on these donations, German Federal Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks said: “With this pledge of support we are sending a clear signal that Germany stands in solidarity with those people and countries particularly affected by climate change. I hope that this pledge will lend good momentum and inspire a constructive atmosphere for the negotiations.”
Sources:
- Chemnick, Jean. “Islanders face severe threat. Can they convince the world?” Climatewire. E&E News, 9 November 2017. Web. 10 November 2017.
- “UN Climate Change Conference 2017 Aims for Further, Faster Ambition Together.” UN Climate Press Release. United Nations Climate Change, 5 November 2017. Web. 10 November 2017.
- “UN Climate Change Conference begins: Germany supports developing countries in climate change adaptation.” Current Press Release. Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, 6 November 2017. Web. 10 November 2017.