How can your projects respond to the climate crisis?
Ben Smith
Following the international climate negotiations at COP-26 last month, there are mixed reviews of the Glasgow Climate Pact and the progress it represents for international climate action.
The UK presidency of the COP had set itself the ambitious task of “keeping 1.5C alive”, referring to the stretch target of the Paris Agreement that will limit some of the most destructive impacts of climate change, if achieved. The IPCC sixth assessment report, published in August and described as “code red for humanity”, had shown that the world is likely to hit 1.5C by the early 2030s without urgent action.
The Glasgow Climate Pact that emerged from the summit was welcomed by many for its commitment to doubling adaptation finance and requesting countries to present more ambitious climate pledges next year. Others were disappointed that this COP once again failed to provide vulnerable nations with the money to rebuild and respond to the unavoidable impacts of climate change. Much was also made of a last-minute intervention from the Indian environment minister Bhupender Yadav that saw language around moving beyond coal weakened in the final text. The call to “phase down” unabated coal use is, nevertheless, unprecedented in the UN climate process, and as the US Climate Envoy John Kerry stated, “it is impossible to phase out coal without first phasing it down”.
The summit negotiation highlights included:
The summit concluded with a Glasgow Climate Pact
After 6 years of negotiation, article 6 has been finalized (this is the rules around international collaboration on carbon markets)
A work programme for a global goal of adaptation has been initiated
A doubling of finance for adaptation has been decided
A new global goal for finance has been initiated (it has been acknowledged that in the coming years leaders will need to work out ways of turning billions into trillions)
We have an enhanced transparency framework (this is about how we track and communicate progress in tackling climate change as we implement the Paris Agreement).
Several pledges were made for forests and oceans
The detail of the international negotiations is hard for most non-experts to follow, but the event drew record-breaking numbers of delegates, huge media interest and engagement from business and civic society. Covid-19 and travel restrictions reduced the ability for some to participate, and there has been criticism around the lack of participation from indigenous and youth voices.
Despite this criticism, my own sense is that awareness of the climate crisis, in the UK at least, continues to grow and many people are beginning to act in their own lives. Personally, I cycled to Glasgow from London with a group of 175 others, all asking people to make climate pledges, rather than traditional sponsorship. All along the route over seven days we met people keen to share how they were making a personal contribution.
On arrival in Glasgow, I was pleased to see how many non-state actors had turned up to add their voice to proceedings, from business, NGO’s and city mayors. The mantra of the city mayor is that “whilst others delay, we do – we are in the business of delivery”. Arup partnered with C40 Cities to showcase climate action from eleven global cities in a physical and virtual Green Zone exhibition – some of the case studies included in the exhibition could be inspiring for Towns.
The same focus on delivery is of course true for local authorities and Towns. Many of the Towns that are part of the Towns Fund programme have declared a climate emergency and all of them are delivering new building, infrastructure and capacity building projects, including those funded through their Towns Deal. Where these projects are moving forward it is right to always be asking – how is this project responding to the need to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
Over the last few months we have reviewed the types of projects being funded under the Towns Fund programme to identify the types of projects that are most common, with a view to considering how implementation could support the UK’s ambition on Net Zero for these common project types. Following this review, we are now launching three Net Zero Implementation Pathway guidance documents (to be published shortly), focused on the following project types:
These documents include case studies for relevant projects of this type, supported by the Towns Fund programme and attempt to set out the key things project proponents should be thinking about at each stage – to reduce the carbon impacts and to drive broader sustainable development benefits. They focus on the key stages of Business Case, Planning and Design, Construction and Operation and Monitoring and Evaluation and are intended as a quick read. The guides help to explain key terms, provide some inspiring case studies and signpost further information. They should act as a provocation. Are you doing enough? Have you engaged broadly enough? Is your project being shaped by the best UK and international case studies and are you aligned with the most relevant standards and guidelines?
We all have a role to play in averting the climate crisis. In our work, in our communities and individually.
Some of the COP-26 negotiation summary above was taken from Carbon Brief. www.carbonbrief.org
A helpful COP-26 explainer guide can be accessed here.