People’s Forum: No Time to Waste – Financing Climate Justice and Resilience

A key session at the Peoples Forum on Monday discussed the barriers and challenges that are faced by member states of the Commonwealth who are at the forefront of the Climate crisis in regard to Climate finance.

Presenters in the panel discussion talked about the reality of the situation – we have wasted time in the past to take collective action and still are to this day. When it comes to Climate Change and what science tells us about what is most important, it is that we have wasted precious time as well as so much money on things that are making the problem worse. How? Panelists stated a very big goal under UNFCC in stabilizing greenhouse gases back in the 1990s. Sadly, too many member states did not take this convention seriously, and significant loss and damage continued. If member states had taken action in the past, there would be no talk of this issue today. 

Presenters also shared frustration towards developed countries that should be paying for the loss and damage of our oceans and lands who are not taking responsibility simply because ‘they are out of fiscal space.’ This is far from the truth given that billions of dollars are invested in fossil fuels every day and that a lot of money is going into subsidies.

Injustice of Climate finance solutions that were discussed first and foremost were to stop investing in the trillions of root causes that are undermining this planet and to use the fiscal space to invest in solutions for our communities and climate vulnerable populations. When we ask for finance, we are not asking for charity. We are calling them to pay their climate debt as developing and vulnerable nations are paying the price for their actions. Other solutions included the exclusion of fossil fuel companies from climate negotiations. We cannot have those that are the problem pretend to be part of the solution.

ATA: CHOGM 2024 – People’s Forum