Global Decisions with Local Impact: What COP26 means for vulnerable communities

GLOBAL DECISIONS WITH LOCAL IMPACT: What COP26 means for vulnerable communities

Coady Webinar Panel Discussion, December 9, 2021

ENGAGE! Women's Empowerment & Active Citizenship

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GLOBAL DECISIONS WITH LOCAL IMPACT:

WHAT COP26 MEANS FOR VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES Coady Webinar Panel Discussion, December 9, 2021

Panelists: Md Shamsuddoha, Chief Executive Officer, Center for Participatory Research and Development (CPRD), Bangladesh Megha Desai, Senior Coordinator, Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), India Mihir Bhatt, Executive Director, All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (AIDMI) Gregoire Baribeau, Senior Economic Advisor, Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Moderator: Dr. Corrine Cash, Assistant Professor, Mount Allison University, former lead of the resilient communities thematic area at the Coady Institute.

“The impact of climate change on the lives and livelihoods, especially the poor and vulnerable is tremendous. On the other hand, the effort that they are making to address this impact by adapting to making small changes in their life, in their house, in their environment is also tremendous. How do we reconcile both?”

Megha Desai

Introduction The Coady Institute partners with five organizations to implement the ENGAGE program in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Haiti, India, Tanzania. A key component of the Engage program is the priority placed on creating a co-learning environment whereby the partner organizations have ongoing opportunities to share their expertise, learn from each other, and collectively explore new ideas, techniques and tools.

The actions needed to address the developing climate emergency and its impacts received global attention during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) held November, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. This webinar was convened to consider how the outcomes of COP26 will inform development practice at the local level to counteract the damaging effects of climate change on communities.

All six partner countries, including Canada, have climatic conditions and agricultural systems that are prone to environmental shocks and disasters. These risks are unevenly distributed and are generally greater for disadvantaged people in developing countries.

Women, rural and urban, are particularly affected by climate change and negative environmental impacts due to their low incomes, unequal participation in decision making and markets, unequal power relations, and intersectional discrimination.

Women can play a crucial role in response to climate change and the environment due to their local knowledge, role in local production and markets, and participation in local food systems. They frequently have the knowledge and understanding of what is needed to adapt to the changing environment and can identify practical solutions. However, they are an untapped resource due to their restricted land rights, lack of financial resources, training, and political inclusion. Therefore, promoting women’s empowerment and agency is not only integral to reducing poverty but also to securing an environmentally sustainable future.

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Summary To set the context, Gregoire presented an overview of process and key outcomes of COP26. The United Nations has two entities working on climate change. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) focuses on the scientific evidence of climate change, the impacts, and what can be done about it. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) focuses on policy related to the global response to climate change to consider what will be done, by whom, and how it will be paid for. These actions are informed by the four pillars of the Paris Agreement arising from COP21: Mitigation to reduce global warming, Adaptation to climate change and reduce disaster impacts, Transparency / Compliance to track progress, and Support to provide funding and tools to implement these actions.

Why is it so difficult for countries to agree? The negotiation process is complicated, involving thousands of people, representing nearly 200 countries. The very different national circumstances of the countries involved reflect their economic contexts (such as reliance on fossil fuels) or environmental vulnerabilities (for example, small island states). Another way to look at the situation is to consider the liaison roles negotiators at these conferences play. They represent their country’s interests in the negotiations, but they also inform their home governments of the external perspective to try to bring those points of view together. A successful international agreement needs to be acceptable to a critical mass with governments and other actors at the domestic level.

Key outcomes of COP26 (November 1st to 13th)

Technical negotiations • Reporting tables/templates • Carbon markets rules • NDC common time frames • Launching discussions on global adaptation and finance goals • Dialogue on funding arrangements for loss and damage

Political development • First UN climate conference since COVID, U.S. return, Brexit • New GHG targets (NDC’s) • New climate finance pledges • Various political declarations • Various corporate commitments

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Five of the most prominent outcomes of COP26 were: Templates for countries to report greenhouse gas emissions and progress towards their targets; Rules for carbon markets to prevent double counting of emissions reductions; Nationally determined contributions (NDC) time frames are the next greenhouse gas targets after 2030 to be published in 2025; and “We don’t like to divide Discussions on global adaptation and finance goals and countries into two blocks of dialogue on funding for loss and damage.

developed and developing.

It lets some countries off the hook. It also lets certain people off the hook, by virtue of where they live as opposed to what they do.”

The webinar’s panelists discussed how climate change impacts their communities as the rise of extreme weather events impacts local economies and marginalized and vulnerable populations. Doha emphasized the importance of communicating local level issues to global audiences. Bangladesh faces an increase in cyclones, flooding, landslides and drought, and slow onset events such as salinity intrusion. The specific impact on women, indigenous and other marginalized communities is often ignored. Mihir expressed a similar situation in India, citing heat waves as an example. The increase in number and intensity of heat waves affects street vendors who must deal with the storage logistics of handling food, vegetables, and water. Women are adapting through home improvements such as whitewashing the terrace of a home or adding a second roof to reflect and reduce heat. As well, municipal and state-level action plans have many organizations working jointly. Megha noted how women in the informal sector carry an unequal burden from climate change despite their minimal contributions to emissions.

Their livelihoods and food security are at stake and there is little discussion on how these women also contribute towards mitigation. She shared the example of SEWA’s Green Livelihood campaign to find affordable solutions for obtaining clean energy.

Gregoire shared Canada’s experiences with extreme weather events including more intense storms, droughts, heat waves, and forest fires. Warmer winters lead to more flooding and insect plagues, and challenges for traditional economies and ice road access in remote, northern communities, which threatens food security.

The discussion turned to how COP26 has impacted the panelists’ organizations. In Bangladesh, CPRD promotes climate finance and development justice. The organization would like to see loss and damage finance as an agenda item in the Paris Agreement that integrates an understanding of human rights, not just as an aspect of adaptation.

Climate finance should reach the local level to help the most vulnerable communities build resilience and adapt to climate change. In India, AIDMI would like national governments’ updated climate action plans to ensure that labour and employment are included to increase green jobs and skills. The commitments for additional funds should go to low-income communities, including women, to acknowledge how loss and damage can be compensated at the local level. For SEWA, COP26 highlighted the need for inclusion of informal sector women workers. The pilots SEWA is working on are owned by the women workers themselves. These women should have access to affordable finance and green technology to improve their livelihoods. Without land title, they are usually denied access to finance. A combination of funding options 3 | Coady Webinar Panel Discussion, December 9, 2021

Gregoire Baribeau

created as a Livelihood Recovery and Resiliency Fund which can offer affordable and farmer friendly terms could help women’s organizations to access it. These barriers to reaching local communities must be resolved for effective, efficient, and sustainable climate change action.

The panelists then responded to questions from the webinar audience:

Who monitors climate issues at the global level, and are there consequences for countries who don’t respond to climate change and reduction of CO2? For the Paris Agreement, every country determines its own national target. There is no legal requirement but a pledge and reporting cycle: Every two years, each country reports on progress towards its pledges. The global stocktake is a five-year review of the global community’s collective progress on climate goals, and will report in 2023.

“Any additional money beyond $100 billion dollars should first and directly go to clean and green work for low-income communities. It should generate employment, assets and finance, especially for women.”

Mihir Bhatt

What civil society strategies of engagement are effective in moving states and corporations in positive directions with respect to climate change? There is concern that powerful states are protecting the rights and injustices of large corporations. This protection impacts the national negotiation process because civil society participation may be limited in both national and global processes.

However, civil society has an important role in raising awareness with political leaders, working towards adaptation, and ensuring more benefits for climate vulnerable communities. In India, civil society advocates for non-fossil fuel energy capacity. Net zero emissions begin at home so civil society should work with local communities and people through implementation of projects.

What are some climate resilient models that can help farmers and women? SEWA supports women as custodians of biodiversity to help reduce and mitigate climate change, and to showcase their work. Civil society must assist women with access to green technology and help localize supply chains. SEWA is piloting a microgrid using idle solar panels of the salt farms in its care. These microgrids are owned by women and produce electricity for the local area. In addition, SEWA provides capacity building training and education to women farmers on the development and use of natural fertilizers and pesticides.

Is net zero a false narrative? Net zero is a false narrative if nothing is implemented or achieved. To achieve progress, having a suitable framework for policy on integrating social justice and action can help as well as pressure for monitoring criteria. Emissions reduction is not the full solution, but we need to go through the process to phase out carbon. It’s important to think about net zero energy as well as net zero poverty and unemployment. Working in community development, that is a critical aspect of a net zero future.

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What steps should organizations take to prepare for COP27?

Bangladesh’s civil society is developing skills and capacities while studying the impacts of climate change, especially in vulnerable communities. India will promote the visibility of informal sector women by increasing awareness at the local and national levels. We need to look at net zero poverty and emissions simultaneously. AIDMI noted the importance of transformative climate finance so that green energy and jobs are a lucrative business and that finance tools reach the local level to help the most vulnerable communities build resilience and adapt to climate change. Basic needs of all citizens should be addressed. Through its capacity building program and with a focus on climate finance, SEWA will provide green employment training to women and youth of the informal sector, and assist them with access to finance to adapt to green livelihoods. In preparation for COP27, countries must update their NDCs to meet the 1.5C target. At COP27, each country will present its updated climate action plan with a focus on green employment and skills. It is critical that a dialogue continue for loss and damage in terms of finance, employment and skills. Helping our members understand what is COP and walk towards it is a way to help us increase the visibility of informal sector women at COP27.

“The loss and damage conversation must be taken beyond adaptation. There is no adaptation technology for addressing salinity and health problems in women. Our concern is to make loss and damage a standalone agenda item and include human rights and cultural losses so that loss and damage can be at its best.”

Md Shamsuddoha

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About the panelists Md Shamsuddoha is the Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Participatory Research and Development (CPRD) in Bangladesh. He and his organization are researchers and influencers of policy makers, especially for climate justice for the most vulnerable. He has a focus on climate change migration and slow-onset events, the secondary impacts of climate change on women, and how to address adaptation gaps.

Megha Desai is a Senior Coordinator with the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) in India. She has been with SEWA for 14 years and is a lead on its agricultural work, and has led programs on rebuilding lives after war and disaster across South Asia. She leads SEWA’s National Farmer Forum Network and on behalf of SEWA, is the Director of the BEES Regional Network on Business, Enterprise and Employment Support.

Mihir Bhatt is the Executive Director of All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (AIDMI).

He was one of the lead co-authors of the IPC Special Report on managing climate risks of extreme events and disasters. He and his organization have implemented these findings in cities, coastal communities and more, to respond to extreme heat events, impacts of climate change on community development and to assess climate risk.

Gregoire Baribeau is from Environment and Climate Change Canada and is Canada’s lead negotiator on the Paris Agreement’s Article 6 on carbon markets. He previously negotiated the nationally determined contributions (NDC) guidance (Article 4) of the Paris Agreement rulebook. He spoke in a personal capacity and reflected on COP26 from a negotiator’s perspective.

Dr. Corrine Cash is an assistant professor at Mount Alison University in the Department of Geography and Environment. Previously she led Coady’s Resilient Communities thematic area and currently facilitates its Climate Change Basics for Community Resilience certificate. Dr. Cash’s work focuses on environment, climate change, urban issues, and social equity (including how women are impacted in these settings). She is currently conducting research on how people who live in informal settlements in coastal cities are adapting to the impacts of climate change.

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