The European Commission demonstrated ambition and adaptability to maintain the target of reducing global warming to 1.5 degrees within reach at the COP27 UN Climate Change Conference, which concluded on Sunday morning in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, the European Commission reports via press release.
After a challenging week of discussions, European leaders reached a strong and unified effort to assist in securing a tough agreement to maintain the Paris Agreement’s goals. The EU’s efforts to create bridges also aided in the establishment of new, fair financing plans with a larger donor pool to assist disadvantaged communities in coping with the harm and loss brought on by climate change.
“COP27 has confirmed that the world will not backtrack on the Paris Agreement and is an important step towards climate justice. However, science is clear that much more is needed to keep the planet liveable. What is equally clear is that the EU played a key role in Sharm el-Sheikh and will not relent on its domestic and international climate action. I thank Executive Vice-President Timmermans and our negotiating team for working night and day to unblock the difficult talks and avoid a breakdown of the UNFCCC process that will remain critical. Our negotiating team was able to build trust with our partners around the world, by staying strong on mitigation and showing flexibility on funding for the loss and damage caused by climate change,” said EC President Ursula von der Leyen on the outcome of COP27.
Regarding mitigation, negotiators concurred that cutting global greenhouse gas emissions by 43% from their 2019 levels by 2030 is necessary to keep global warming to 1.5C.
They underscored the need from the Glasgow Climate Pact for nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to be adjusted as required by the end of 2023 in order to comply with the Paris Agreement temperature objective. They also acknowledged that this requires expedited action in this crucial decade.
Additionally, they reaffirmed that a new mitigation work program will be guided by the Glasgow Climate Pact in order to urge negotiators to align their goals and activities in the direction of net zero.
In regards to loss and damage, participants at COP27 decided to create new financial plans to support poor nations that are most susceptible to the negative consequences of climate change. This involves establishing a new fund that will concentrate on dealing with loss and damage, which will be done by a transitional committee that will also look at increasing financing sources.
