climate change
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has stated that governments must put aside “geopolitical tensions” and push for more international collaboration in order to advance the battle against climate change.
“The 1.5C target” agreed in Paris in 2015 is “still within reach,” but it faces “many challenges,” Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency, told an international climate and energy gathering in Madrid on Monday ahead of COP28.
Among the obstacles, he said, is “the geopolitical fragmentation of the world,” which is “creating a key impediment for some of the steps we hope to take.” Although investment in “the technology area and in clean energy technologies” is “very strong,” he believes it is insufficient.
The world’s energy future will be central to discussions at the United Nations’ COP28 climate summit, which will be held in Dubai, a major oil producer, between November 30 and December 12.
Teresa Ribera, Spain’s Ecology Minister, admitted that talks at COP28 would be “challenging,” but said that “multilateralism is the way to respond to the current challenges.” “A global problem deserves a global response,” she told the delegates.
Global tensions have risen in recent years, owing mostly to Russia’s offensive against Ukraine and the growing competition between the US and China, raising concerns that the climate catastrophe will be pushed further down the global agenda. The critical Dubai meetings should allow the world community to make progress on greenhouse gas reduction and the transition to sustainable energy.
It will also be an opportunity to assess national commitments to meet the Paris Agreement’s goals of keeping global warming below 2 degrees Celsius and, if possible, below 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels – an enormous task given current conditions.
Several conditions must be met, according to the IEA, for the Dubai summit to be declared a success. Tripling investment in renewables and a funding system for sustainable energy in developing countries will be major issues.
Also Read: IMF, World Bank to Tackle Climate Goals Among Reforms at Annual Meetings
