COP19—Warsaw Local weather Convention — World Points

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March 1, 2026

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by Anup Shah
This web page created Monday, December 02, 2013

This web page: https://www.globalissues.org/article/803/cop19-warsaw-climate-conference.
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On this web page:

Introduction
Assembly consequence
In context: frequent however differentiated tasks
In context: Hurricane Haiyan
Lack of urgency
Extra data
Information tales from IPS

Introduction

November 11 – 23, 2013, Warsaw, Poland was the venue for the nineteenth annual United Nations Local weather Change Convention, also referred to as the nineteenth Convention of the Events — or COP 19.

The aim of this convention was to create a loss and harm pillar of a brand new local weather treaty to be finalized in 2015. The opposite two pillars mentioned in earlier conferences are mitigation (emission reductions) and adaptation pillars.

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Assembly consequence

The principle consequence of the assembly was the institution of a world mechanism for a loss and harm related to local weather change impacts .

Predictably, the loss and harm side of local weather negotiations introduced out the worst in some international locations. Some creating international locations have been going to withstand the thought of financing adaptation to local weather change, whereas others appeared to hate the thought of local weather reparations for poor international locations. Just a few years earlier, industrialized nations had made a authorized dedication to a world local weather fund. Unsurprisingly, not a lot got here of it, as Inter Press Service summarized,

In 2009 on the semi-infamous Copenhagen talks, the wealthy international locations made a cope with creating international locations, saying in impact: We’ll offer you billions of {dollars} for adaptation, ramping as much as 100 billion {dollars} a 12 months by 2020, in alternate for our mitigation amounting to small CO2 cuts as an alternative of constructing the large cuts that we should always do.

The cash to assist poor international locations adapt flowed for the primary three years however has largely dried up. Warsaw was alleged to be the Finance COP to convey the promised cash. That did not occur.

Nations like Germany, Switzerland and others in Europe solely managed to scrape collectively guarantees of 110 million {dollars} into the Inexperienced Local weather Fund. Growing international locations wished a assure of 70 billion a 12 months by 2016 however have been blocked by the U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan and others.

Stephen Lehey, South Scores Eleventh-Hour Win on Local weather Loss and Injury, Inter Press Service, November 24, 2013

It bought to the purpose that tons of of representatives from varied NGOs walked out of the negotiating rooms to protest in opposition to developed international locations’ reluctance to decide to a loss and harm mechanism. And this was a day after the G77+China group of 133 creating international locations walked out of negotiations over the identical factor.

Wanting via the briefing reviews from the revered NGO, the Third World Community, It appears that evidently on the floor, whereas an consequence was finally thrashed out, there are a lot of areas of weak spot of enough vagueness to fulfill everybody that contentious points which are seemingly resolved can nonetheless be challenged and altered sooner or later.

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In context: frequent however differentiated tasks

A few years in the past all nations agreed that local weather change was largely the results of actions from immediately’s industrialized nations, as carbon dioxide — the primary greenhouse fuel — stays within the ambiance for many years. But, the poorest would find yourself struggling essentially the most for an issue they largely didn’t trigger. The approaches to mitigation (emissions discount) would due to this fact be totally different for these teams of nations — the frequent however differentiated tasks precept.

It’s on this context that the dialogue for loss and harm has come about. And it’s one thing that wealthy international locations are eager to eliminate .

The years of resistance on this concern (and lots of others) means every time it’s mentioned once more the reactions appear to get much more hostile. Mixed with the dearth of detailed context within the mainstream media protection of this side, it then turns into simpler every time to see culprits as China and India given their huge greenhouse emissions lately, in comparison with the far higher quantity by the industrialized nations over the longer interval. See this web site’s part on local weather justice for extra detailed background.

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In context: Hurricane Haiyan

Hurricane Haiyan was the biggest cyclone on file to hit land

The assembly got here on the time when the devastating Hurricane Haiyan had simply killed 1000’s within the Philippines and affected tens of millions extra. It was an ominous warning of what could possibly be extra frequent as local weather change continues to take maintain.

It was additionally an instance of how poorer nations could possibly be affected by an issue they’ve largely not been accountable for and that whereas all of the worldwide outpouring of assist and help was extremely welcome, that help for stopping and adapting to such occasions is paramount and efforts are urgently wanted to curb emission will increase.

In an emotional speech the Philippines lead negotiator for the convention, Naderev Saño, acquired a standing ovation for saying that he’ll go on a starvation strike till a significant consequence is in sight.

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Lack of urgency

Inter Press Service (IPS) famous the seeming lack of urgency given the years and years of delay and watering down of significant motion:

To have a great likelihood at staying below two levels C, industrialised international locations must crash their CO2 emissions 10 p.c per 12 months beginning in 2014, mentioned Kevin Anderson of the Tyndall Centre for Local weather Change Analysis on the College of Manchester.

We will nonetheless do two C however not the best way we’re going, Anderson mentioned on the sidelines of COP 19 in Warsaw. He puzzled why negotiators on the within will not be reacting to the fact that it’s too late for incremental adjustments.

I’m actually surprised there isn’t a sense of urgency right here, he instructed IPS.

Stephen Lehey, South Scores Eleventh-Hour Win on Local weather Loss and Injury, Inter Press Service, November 24, 2013

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