For COP27 to be a success, there is a need to focus on climate finance, including loss and damage finance, and climate accountability. 

“Climate justice delayed is climate justice denied,” said Arunabha Ghosh at a press briefing at COP27.

However, only 34% of nations, and no developed nation, mention loss and damage in their Nationally Determined Contributions.

Source: CEEW Analysis

There is a need to strengthen climate accountability. This can be done by expanding the scope of the Compliance Committee under Article 15 of the Paris Agreement to impose punitive measures on countries threatening to exit from the agreement.

Can there be a new way to fight climate change? Many activists and some governments have begun to adopt a new theory of climate collaboration that avoids seeking consensus across all the nations.

What matters most at COP27 won’t be big-ticket multilateral diplomacy but, instead, the practical, sideline convenings of governments and firms willing and able to force change.

Know more about the Council on Energy, Environment and Water’s publications, opinion pieces and events at COP-27