Thursday, 2 March 2023

NEWSLETTER #45 - SOCIETY OF AFRICAN EARTH SCIENTISTS

 






 




Volume 11, Issue 4,  October - December 2022

 

CONTENT

Chair's Foreword

Outcomes of COP27, Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, November 2022

Earth Science Events

References and selected reading

 

Chair's Foreword*

In this issue we briefly report on the outcomes of the COP 27 Climate Conference held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt in November 2022. We  make note of some initiatives that follow on from these outcomes which suggest areas of interest to be revisited in later issues.



 Outcomes of COP 27 Climate Change Conference, Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt 2022

The 2022 COP 27 has been dubbed the "African COP", due to being hosted on the continent and due to the host nation prioritising the concerns of African countries including key concerns that they share with other nations of the global south, such as doubts over whether the $100 billion of financial commitments [1], will be met by the industrialised nations. This is in support of  the cost of losses and damages as well as the need to fund adapted infrastructure and development for climate change.  Other concerns include, of course, whether the $100 billion is itself sufficient as $1 trillion was proposed by the African negotiators at COP 26. Important new African-led initiatives were forged including a) the collaboration of 32 African nations in restoring 120 million hectares of degraded landscape by 2030 and b) the African Cities Water Adaptation Fund (ACWA), providing finance for projects in water management and sanitation for African cities.

   As well as acknowledging the need to help climate change vulnerable nations deal with climate change induced damages and losses, a fund was setup to aid nations that face severe climate change related damage.

   The slow progress in the making of adaptations for climate change is tied partly to the failure by developed nations to honour their pledges to support the $100 billion fund. At COP 27, an attempt was made to accelerate matters by adopting an "Adaptation Agenda". A target date for this adaptation was set as 2030.

   The progress was also deemed to be slow in the global challenge to cut emissions.  These are facilitated through a planning framework known as NDCs (nationally determined contributions), which each nation should present as their strategy to cut their national carbon emissions. Since COP 26 we have seen a small increase in the number of nations submitting their NDCs from 34 to 54 out of a total of 194 parties.

   It is convenient here for the reader, to consider the concerns about progress surrounding adaptations for climate change and the cutting of emissions noted above in tandem, as they have been addressed together in the resulting Sharm el Sheikh Implementation Plan[2], one of the key outcomes of the climate conference which incorporates contributions made by working groups on climate change impacts[3] and climate change mitigation[4].

   It was noted that finance reforms gained traction at the COP 27, with concern re-iterated on the need to meet the $100 billion  fund commitment. Dissatisfaction was expressed in the way a large part of the finance is to be provided as loans which will only serve to increase the debt burden of poor nations.

   Debate lingered on the need to accelerate the energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable or low emissions energy. From the COP26 debate, the "phase out" of fossil fuels has been watered down to the commitment to "phase down".  At Sharm el Sheikh, 80 nations agreed to "phase down" fossil fuels use and a commitment was made to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy.

   There was an elevation in the importance of "nature-based solutions" to climate change including options that retained the integrity of ecosystems. It is hoped that this focus might also curb tendencies away from highly risky, highly intrusive climate change mitigation solutions like geo-engineering with potentially catastrophic and unpredictable weather and climate feedback responses including unprecedented droughts, floods, heatwaves, or  extreme cold spells. A recent example of such weather might be the "bomb cyclone" that gripped the US mainland in December 2022 when a sudden temperature drop of as much as  50 degrees Celsius occurred within a few hours due to a sudden drop in air pressure causing the lowest temperatures recorded in US history. Dozens of people died as a result of the extreme weather. 

   Towards the close of the Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation Plan there is clear  emphasis on the importance of taking note of generational shift and involving children and youth in the implementation of climate change mitigation solutions. The Plan "encourages parties to include children and youth in their processes for designing and implementing climate policy and action... recognising the importance of ... maintaining the stability of the climate system for future generations" [5]. In the future, it will be beneficial if this debate continues while guided by  the need to include the discussion on developing the renewable energy transition alongside that of addressing youth unemployment [6].

   

 

Earth Science Events

April 15-16, 2023

International Conference  on Agriculture, Biotechnology, Biological

and  Biosystems Engineering

VISION:  https://waset.org/agricultural-biotechnology-biological-and-biosystems-engineering-conference-in-april-2023-in-cape-town

VENUE: Cape Town, South Africa

 

June 30, 2023

Patrice Lumumba African Youth Science Programme Launch



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

August  9-10, 2023

International Conference  on Tectonic Geomorphology and Paleoseismology

VISION:  https://waset.org/tectonic-geomorphology-and-paleoseismology-conference-in-august-2023-in-lagos

VENUE: Lagos, Nigeria

 

November 4-5, 2023

International Conference  on Agricultural Engineering

VISION:  https://waset.org/agricultural-engineering-conference-in-november-2023-in-cape-town

VENUE: Cape Town, South Africa

 

December  13-14, 2023

International Conference  on Theoretical and Computational Seismology

VISION:  https://waset.org/theoretical-and-computational-seismology-conference-in-december-2023-in-cairo

VENUE: Cairo, Egypt

 

 

 

 

 

References

[1]  Alayza, N, P Bhandari, et al.,  COP27: Key Outcomes from UN Climate Talks at Sharm el-Shiekh, World Resources Institute, 8 December 2022. https://www.wri.org/insights/cop27-key-outcomes-un-climate-talks-sharm-el-sheikh

[2] UNFCCC, Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation Plan,  20 November 2022. https://unfccc.int/documents/624444?clid=CjwKCAiAr4GgBhBFEiwAgwORrb15Z6978 Hpx3tgd8S7b5EAfPUnrysjjYi1dnO9ik8nAXzt1RzvfTBoC3HMQAvD_BwE

[3] Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2022. Climate Change 2022: Impact Adaptation and Vulnerability Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report to the IPCC. H Portner, D Roberts, H Tignor, et al. (eds.), Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. 

[4] Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2022. Climate Change 2022: Impact Adaptation and Vulnerability Contribution of Working Group III to the Sixth Assessment Report to the IPCC. P Shukla, R Slade,  et al. (eds.), Cambridge and New York.  

[5] UNFCCC, Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation Plan, Ibid., p.9, item#55.

[6] Watts, H and B Kibiti, Accelerating the global energy transition powered by a young workforce, Power for All, 17 February 2021.




 

*Board of the Society of African Earth Scientists: Dr Enas Ahmed (Egypt), Osmin Callis (Secretary - Guyana/Nigeria), Mathada Humphrey (South Africa), Ndivhuwo Cecilia Mukosi (South Africa), Damola Nadi (Nigeria), Dr Chukwunyere Kamalu (Chair - Nigeria).


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