Media Talks Editorial group of more than 30 newspapers calls for $100 billion in climate aid for poor countries 15.11.2022 16:16

London – The British newspaper The Guardian is leading a movement of more than 30 media outlets from more than twenty countries on Tuesday, 15th, with a bold editorial demanding urgent action from world leaders attending COP27 to mitigate the effects of the climate crisis. , the movement is called ‘damage and loss’.

The editorial proposes debt forgiveness for countries at the forefront of the climate emergency, calls for a climate tax on fossil fuel companies, and calls for fulfillment of US$100 billion annual transfer commitments pending since 2020. Year for countries in developing countries to face the effects of the environmental crisis.

The text was released the day President-elect Lula arrived at COP27, and one of the meetings scheduled was with John Kerry, the US special envoy, who could describe the country’s investments in Amazon preservation. .

Media coverage of loss and damage during COP27

The jointly published editorial does not address country-specific issues, but calls for more developed countries to take action to offset the impact of carbon emissions. See the text:

The climate crisis is a global problem that requires the cooperation of all nations. That’s why today more than 30 newspapers and media organizations in more than 20 countries have adopted a common vision of what needs to be done.

Time is running out. Rather than abandoning fossil fuels and opting for clean energy, many rich countries are reinvesting in oil and gas.

Therefore, they will not be able to reduce emissions fast enough while negotiating the aid they should give to poor countries. All this as the planet approaches a point of no return – where the climate chaos becomes irreversible.

Since COP26 held in Glasgow 12 months ago, countries have pledged to do just one-fifth of what is necessary to keep temperatures 1.5C below pre-industrial levels.

From floods in Pakistan to heatwaves in Europe, and from bushfires in Australia to hurricanes in the United States, no continent has experienced extreme weather disasters this year.

Given that this is happening with temperatures soaring at around 1.1°C for now, the world can look forward to much worse outcomes.

While many countries want to reduce their dependence on Russia, the world is experiencing a new “gold rush” for fossil fuel projects.

These are launched as temporary supply measures, but there is a risk of irreversible damage to the planet.

All of this reinforces the belief that humanity must abandon its dependence on fossil fuels. If renewable energy were the norm, there would be no climate crisis.

The world’s poorest people will bear the brunt of the devastation caused by drought, melting ice sheets and crop shortages.

Money will be needed to protect the lives and livelihoods of these groups. Developing countries need US$2 trillion a year to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and tackle the climate crisis, according to a report presented at COP27.

Rich countries account for only one in eight people in the world today, but they are responsible for half of all greenhouse gases. These nations have a clear moral responsibility to help.

Developing countries should be given enough money to deal with the dangerous conditions they have done little to create, especially as a global recession approaches.

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Rich countries must deliver previously committed fund commitments (such as $100 billion per year from 2020) to demonstrate their seriousness.

As a minimum measure, they should impose an immediate tax on the combined profits of the largest oil and gas companies – estimated at around $100 billion in the first three months of the year.

The United Nations was right to want the money to be used to support the most vulnerable. But such a fee would be just the beginning.

Poor countries also have debts that make it impossible for them to survive climate disasters or protect themselves from further harm. Lenders must be generous in writing off the debts of those on the forefront of the climate emergency.

These measures need not wait for coordinated international action. Countries can implement them on their own at the regional or national level.

A country’s cumulative emissions should be the basis of its responsibility to act. While private finance can help, the burden of throwing money out has historically been in large emitters.

See who’s joining the initiative

The United States is the country with the most engagement, but none of the country’s major newspapers have republished the editorial. The most influential Miami Herald on the list.

Next comes Greece, a country punished by forest fires. Three newspapers in the country published a joint text.

See the full list:

Mail & Guardian (South Africa); Camunda News (Angola); National Observer (Canada); El Espectador (Colombia); Politiken (Denmark); elDiario.es (Spain); Covering Climate Now, Miami Herald, The Nation and Rolling Stone (United States), Rappler (Philippines); Liberation and Mediapart (France); Efimerida ton Syntakton, Kathimerini and Protagon (Greece); Telex (Hungary); Hindu (India); Weather (Indonesia); Irish Examiner and Irish Independent (Ireland), Haaretz (Israel); La Reppubblica (Italy); Collector (Jamaica); Macaranga (Malaysia); Reform (Mexico); Journalism Innovation and Development Center (Nigeria); Pacific Environment Weekly (Pacific Islands); Gazeta Wyborcza (Poland); General (Portugal); Daily Mirror and The Guardian (UK); T&T Guardian (Trinidad and Tobago) and international publication The Environmental Reporting Collective.

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