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Tracking COP27: Notable Moments and Key

Themes
by Clara Apt and Katherine Fang
November 18, 2022

This year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) occurs during a time of
global conflict and severe environmental instability. The Russia–Ukraine war, natural
disasters such as the devastating floods in Pakistan, and humanitarian crises have
exacerbated concerns over energy security, emissions, and long-term sustainability. As
the pernicious effects of climate change become more acute, the world is running out of
time to take meaningful action to address the crisis.

Against this backdrop, heads of state and delegates will meet in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt
from Nov. 6–18 to discuss how to achieve the world’s collective climate goals as stated in
the Paris Agreement. Building on the momentum from COP26, delegates are expected to
implement the Glasgow Climate Pact and unveil a plan to curb methane emissions
pursuant to a joint pledge made at the conference last year.

During the next two weeks, Just Security will highlight COP27’s key moments and trends
to watch. We invite you to regularly check this page for the latest commentary from
COP27 as it is updated to reflect meetings, speeches, expert analyses, and more.

Relevant Expert Analysis

Collections

Climate Change Archives

Just Security’s coverage of climate-related affairs, from natural disasters and
environmental diplomacy to energy security and its connection to human rights.

Articles
Climate Change Diplomacy

Tackling Climate Change Displacement at COP27

Camila Bustos and Jeffrey Chase (@MaCamilaBustos) discuss the need to create
pathways to protect climate-displaced people and honor climate finance commitments
on behalf of industrialized countries.

Loss and Damage at COP27: What’s Been Lost, What Can We Salvage From the
Damage?
Jocelyn Perry (@JocelynGPerry) urges the international community to confront
disparities in historical responsibility for climate change, and current climatic events,
and expand upon mitigation and adaptation measures at COP27.

The Egypt Climate Summit: Four Key Questions to Help Frame COP27
Mark Nevitt (@MarkNevitt) examines questions relevant to the international
negotiations taking place at COP27, including how climate protests and U.S. foreign
relations will impact climate talks.

The Mining Gap: Critical Minerals and Geopolitical Competition

Gregory Brew (@gbrew24) and Morgan Bazilian (@MBazilian) discuss how the world’s
demand for critical minerals will undermine international security and decarbonization
efforts.

Climate Change Diplomacy Has an Authoritarianism Problem

Kirk Herbertson (@KirkHerbertson) analyzes the links between civic participation and
climate change and warns how authoritarian regimes may undermine the policy
commitments that will be announced at COP27.

Good COP, Bad COP: After the Mixed Results of COP26, What’s Next?
Ben Abraham and Jocelyn Perry analyze the “mixed results” of the 2021 United Nations
Climate Change Conference and suggest that implementation of the 2015 Paris
Agreement will depend on countries’ commitment to addressing the threat of climate
change.
Climate Change and National Security

Climate Security, Energy Security, and the Russia-Ukraine War

Mark Nevitt (@marknevitt) discusses how, amidst the war in Ukraine, Europe’s reliance
on Russian oil underscores the importance of adopting a comprehensive approach to
energy policy that considers both climate change and geopolitical risk. 

Declaring a Climate Emergency Won’t Save the Planet – Energy Security Could
Emily Holland (@EmilyJHolland) and Morgan Bazilian (@MBazilian) analyze how a
formal declaration of a national climate emergency may hamper policy responses rather
than win political and popular support. 

Is Climate Change a National Emergency?

Mark Nevitt (@marknevitt) argues how the declaration of a climate emergency can
elevate an issue in the international and national consciousness and spark new
environmental legislation. 

Getting Climate Intelligence Right

Rod Schoonover (@RodSchoonover) and Erin Sikorsky (@ErinSikorsky) review whether
the intelligence community has adequately conveyed the severity of the climate
emergency – an issue that will dictate the national security landscape for years to come. 

Climate and Human Rights

Climate Change is a Human Rights Issue – Particularly in US-China Relations

Tim Hirschel-Burns (@TimH_B) outlines how the future of US-China relations must
focus on human rights to appropriately frame the debate between climate collaboration
and climate competition whilst reducing emissions.

Climate and Conflict 

Bringing Climate and Terrorism Together at the UN Security Council – Proceed with
Caution
Jordan Street (@jordan_street07) evaluates the UN Security Council’s first open
 thematic debate to explore the links between climate change and terrorism and
emphasizes how investing in climate solutions can help peacebuilding efforts.

Climate and Food Security

Framing the Problem of Hunger and Conflict at the UN Security Council

Michael Fakhri (@MichaelFakhri) analyzes the Security Council’s failure to adequately
address the link between food security and conflict and calls for a global right to food
plan.

Climate and Humanitarianism

Long-Term International Climate Assistance to Pakistan is a Hard Sell, but

Necessary. Here’s Why.
Michael Kugelman (@MichaelKugelman) examines Pakistan’s severe climate
vulnerability and the need for international aid as the country endures devastating
floods. 

Amid Devastating Floods, Pakistan’s Leaders Must Learn from the Past to Avoid
Future Mistakes
Jumaina Siddiqui (@jumainasiddiqui) analyzes the role of the international community
amidst Pakistan’s devastating floods, recommending that they assist in the road to
recovery and bolster mitigation efforts.

Climate Change and the Courts

Greenhouse Gaslighting: Deceptive Moderation and West Virginia v. EPA

Craig Green reviews the Supreme Court’s conservative supermajority how its decisions
hold consequences for the vision of environmental policy.

Relevant Documents
Reports
 2030 Adaptation Outcomes for Human Settlements, UN Climate Change High-Level
Champions and Boston Consulting Group, November 17, 2022

Anticipating Vulnerability Hotspots in the Sahel: A Synthesis Report from the Sahel
Predictive Analytics Project in Support of the United Nations Integrated Strategy for
the Sahel (UNISS), UN Integrated Strategy for the Sahel, November 16, 2022

Sustainable Food Cold Chains: Opportunities, Challenges and the Way Forward, UN
Environment Programme, November 12, 2022

10 New Insights in Climate Science 2022, Future Earth, The Earth League, and
WCRP, November 10, 2022

Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction, UN Environment Programme,

November 9, 2022

Making good on the Glasgow Climate Pact: a call to action to achieve one gigaton of
emissions reductions from forests by 2025, UN-REDD Programme, UN Environment
Programme, and the Green Gigaton Challenge, November 7, 2022

World Heritage Glaciers: Sentinels of climate change, UNESCO, November 3, 2022

Adaptation Gap Report 2022: Too Little, Too Slow – Climate adaptation failure puts
world at risk, UN Environment Programme, November 1, 2022

Emissions Gap Report 2022: The Closing Window – Climate crisis calls for rapid
transformation of societies, UN Environment Programme, October 27, 2022

Key Events
November 20

Notable Events
 Negotiations that continued late into the night on Saturday culminated early Sunday
morning in an agreement to establish a loss and damage fund. Most of the key
questions concerning implementation remain to be determined. A committee
comprising 24 countries, ten wealthy nations and fourteen others, will over the next
year hammer out details of how the fund should be structured, which countries will
contribute to it, and how the money will be distributed. The deal represents a
landmark agreement that developing nations had made the cornerstone of their
agenda during COP27–and had been the subject of tense negotiations throughout the
conference. The United States and other wealthy nations had historically opposed the
establishment of the fund. No similar announcement was made regarding talks to cut
greenhouse gas emissions.

Notable Quotes

António Guterres (@antonioguterres), Secretary-General, United Nations

“This COP has taken an important step towards justice. I welcome the decision to
establish a loss and damage fund and to operationalize it in the coming period.
Clearly, this will not be enough, but it is a much-needed political signal to rebuild
broken trust. The voices of those on the frontlines of the climate crisis must be
heard.”

Sameh Shoukry (@MfaEgypt), COP27 President, Egypt

“We rose to the occasion. We worked around the clock, day and night, but united
in working for one gain, one higher purpose, one common goal. In the end we
delivered. We listened to the calls of anguish and despair.”

Sherry Rehman (@sherryrehman), Climate Minister, Pakistan

“The announcement offers hope to vulnerable communities all over the world
who are fighting for their survival from climate stress.”
“This is not about accepting charity. This is a down payment on investment in our
futures, and in climate justice.”

Molwyn Joseph,  Minister of Health, Wellness, and the Environment, Antigua and
Barbuda
“Today, the international community has restored global faith in this critical
process that is dedicated to ensuring no one is left behind. The agreements made
 at COP27 are a win for our entire world. We have shown those who have felt
neglected that we hear you, we see you, and we are giving you the respect and
care you deserve.”
Frans Timmermans (@TimmermansEU), Vice President, European Commission
“Too many parties are not ready to make more progress today in the fight against
the climate crisis. There were too many attempts to roll back what we agreed in
Glasgow. This deal is not enough [on cutting emissions].”

Mohamed Adow (@mohadow), Executive Director, Power Shift Africa

“COP27 has done what no other COP has achieved and created a loss and damage
fund to support the most impacted communities of climate change. This has been
something which vulnerable countries have been calling for since the 1992 Rio
Earth Summit.” 
“It is worth noting that we have the fund but we need money to make it
worthwhile. What we have is an empty bucket. Now we need to fill it so that
support can flow to the most impacted people who are suffering right now at the
hands of the climate crisis.”

November 19

Notable Events

China and the United States have renewed their partnership to tackle the climate
crisis and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to China’s climate envoy Xie
Zhenhua. Xie said he and John Kerry, US envoy for climate, have had “a close and
active dialogue, that was overall very constructive. [We want to] ensure the success of
COP27 and exchange opinions on our differences.”

Notable Quotes

Vanessa Nakate (@vanessa_vash), Climate Activist, Uganda

“COP27 was meant to be the African COP, but the needs of African people have
been obstructed throughout. Loss and damage in vulnerable countries is now
unignorable, but some developed countries here in Egypt have decided to ignore
our suffering. Young people were not able to have their voice heard at COP27
because of restrictions on protest, but our movement is growing and ordinary
 citizens in every country are starting to hold their governments accountable on
the climate crisis.”
Frans Timmermans (@TimmermansEU), Vice President, European Commission
“The European Union wants a positive result, but we don’t want a result at any
price. We will not accept the result if it takes us back. We need to move forward.
All ministers, as they have told me, like myself, are prepared to walk away if we do
not have a result that justice to what the world is waiting for.”

David Tong, Senior Campaigner, Oil Change International

“Every COP reaches a strange challenging endgame and every COP I’ve seen we
reach a point where it looks like negotiations might collapse, but this looks like
something else. Negotiations are on the verge of a breakdown even more so than
in other years. We’re hearing conflicting things about what the text is saying, but
what we’re hearing is deeply worrying.”

November 18

Notable Events

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry informed delegates that the climate
negotiations would spill into Saturday. The global talks have been deadlocked as
richer nations have struggled to find common ground with developing countries. “I
remain concerned at the number of outstanding issues,” Shoukry said. Secretary-
General António Guterres said at a joint press conference with Shoukry, “We are at
crunch time in the negotiations. COP27 is scheduled to close in 24 hours – and the
parties remain divided on a number of significant issues. There is clearly a breakdown
in trust between North and South, and between developed and emerging economies.
This is no time for finger pointing. The blame game is a recipe for mutually assured
destruction.”
Similarly, Brazilian Minister of the Environment Joaquim Leite said with regard to
ongoing pressure to establish a loss and damage fund, “Unfortunately, we did not
reach an expected result regarding climate finance. Brazil placed pressure together
with the G77 plus China, but so far, we have no news that the loss and damage fund
will come out.”
 European Commission vice president, Frans Timmermans, launched a proposal on
behalf of the European that would see it agree to establish a loss and damage fund.

Notable Quotes

Mahmoud Mohieldin (@UNenvoyMM), UN Climate Change High-Level Champion,

Egypt
“Different MDBs [multilateral development banks] should extend concessional
finance terms to low-middle, as well as low-income, countries – with 1% interest
rate, a 10-year grade period, and a 20-year repayment period (for a total of a 30-
year maturity period). If this gets through, it could lead to a transformation in
climate finance and investments in developing countries. Only then would I say
that climate finance would be ‘efficient, sufficient, and fair’.”

Nigel Topping (@topnigel), UN Climate Change High-Level Champion, United

Kingdom
“The truth is that 1.5C is not a target. As earth systems scientists remind us: 1.5C
is a limit. A limit anchored in physics: beyond which we unleash tipping points to
hell… The truth is that we are far, far off track from where we need to be. But we
must not give up hope. Instead, we must imagine better times ahead and unleash
the incredible ingenuity of humankind.”

Nakeeyat Dramani Sam, Youth Activist, Ghana

“If all of you were young people like me, wouldn’t you have already agreed to do
what is needed to save our planet? Should we let the youth take over? Maybe only
the youth delegations should be at the next COP.”
“Some of the communities in my country are paying heavy prices since our planet
was lit on fire by some people. This puts a simple question on the table… When
can you pay us back? Because payment is overdue.”

Catherine Abreu (@catabreu), Founder, Destination Zero

“The Egyptian presidency and other countries involved in these negotiations have
a choice. Do we walk out of this COP saying we have something tangible to bring
home to our communities? Or do we leave this COP with the same empty-handed
promises that we’ve left most COPs with over the last three decades.”

Eamon Ryan (@EamonRyan), Minister, Ireland

 “The UN Framework convention on climate change was written from a 1992
perspective. The scale of the climate crisis here and now is something we did not
expect then.”
Molwyn Joseph,  Minister of Health, Wellness, and the Environment, Antigua and
Barbuda
“Some developed countries are furiously trying to stall progress and even worse,
attempting to undermine small island developing states. So, not only are they
causing the worst impacts of the climate crisis, they are playing games with us in
this multilateral process.”
“There has to be a mechanism [for funding loss and damage]. Whether you call it
a fund or facility. Failure to do so would establish a feeling of betrayal.”

Solutions Day (November 17)

Solutions Day will bring together government representatives, businesses and innovators
to share their experiences and ideas with the aim of spreading awareness, discussing
challenges, and building future collaborations.

Notable Events

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) published a 20-page

draft of a final international climate agreement, which will be the culmination of
COP27. The draft repeats many of the goals mentioned in last year’s Glasgow Climate
Pact, such as aiming to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius and
phasing down coal power. It also “welcomes” the agreement to include loss and
damage payments, but does not specifically provide details on how to establish a loss
and damage funding program. The paper is likely to be reworked before Friday’s
deadline. 
The COP27 Presidency launched the Sustainable Urban Resilience for the Next
Generation (SURGe) initiative, which puts forward a framework for achieving
sustainable and resilient urban systems and facilitating access to finance. 
The Accelerate to Zero (A2Z) coalition was also launched. It aims to promote and
support the world’s transition to zero emission vehicles globally. It is the largest
international transportation coalition with over 200 organizations, including
governments, industry and civil society.
 Representatives of constituencies of indigenous peoples, women, youth and workers
demanded climate justice at the People’s Plenary, which takes place annually at the
UN’s climate summits. The activists shared their experiences regarding climate
change and discussed the human rights threatened by the ongoing environmental
crisis. The plenary attendants then marched at the outdoor area of the convention
center and read the COP27 People’s Declaration for Climate Justice. The document
calls for a “system change” to ensure just transitions to peoples-owned decentralized
renewable energy systems, the repayment of climate debt by reducing emissions to
zero by 2030, and addressing loss and damage.

Notable Quotes

António Guterres (@antonioguterres), Secretary-General, United Nations

“There is clearly a breakdown in trust between North and South, and between
developed and emerging economies. This is no time for finger-pointing. The
blame game is a recipe for mutually assured destruction.” 
 “The most effective way to rebuild trust is by finding an ambitious and credible
agreement on loss and damage and financial support to developing countries. The
time for talking on loss and damage finance is over. We need action.”
“Reflect the urgency, scale and enormity of the challenge faced by developing
countries. We cannot continue to deny climate justice to those who have
contributed least to the climate crisis and are getting hurt the most.” 
“The 1.5 target is not simply about keeping a goal alive – it’s about keeping
people alive. I see the will to keep to the 1.5 goal – but we must ensure that
commitment is evident in the COP27 outcome.”

Maria Shikongo, Climate Activist, Namibia

“We should be the ones on the table. We should be the ones as indigenous nations
[are among the most impacted] communities. We should be there. We have the
solutions. Indigenous people have the solutions, but they refuse to listen to
them.”

Biodiversity Day (November 16)

Biodiversity Day will focus on the impacts of climate change on oceans, endangered
species, coral reefs, impacts of plastic waste on aquatic ecosystems, and ecosystem-based
solutions.

Notable Events

Brazilian President-Elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva offered to host UN climate talks in
the Amazon in 2025. He declared, “I’m here in front of all of you to tell you that Brazil
is back. Brazil can’t be isolated as it was in the last four years.” He said the country
will prioritize preserving the rainforest and gave his speech standing among
governors of Brazilian Amazon states. The President-Elect also called for support for
loss and damage.
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) launched the Today and Tomorrow initiative, a
new climate financing scheme to help countries with climate resilience and disaster
preparedness for children and youth, as well as protect this same demographic from
future climate harms. In its initial three-year pilot, the fund will focus on eight
countries in four global cyclone basins: Bangladesh, Comoros, Haiti, Fiji, Madagascar,
Mozambique, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. UNICEF plans to raise $30 million for
the initiative.  
France and Spain joined a pledge to halt the sale of gasoline-driven vehicles by 2035,
five years earlier than their previous target. The countries are among a group of new
signatories to the Zero Emission Vehicles Declaration (ZEVD), originally launched at
COP26. 
Belgium, Colombia, Germany, Ireland, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, the United
Kingdom and the United States announced that they were joining the Global Offshore
Wind Alliance (GOWA), originally founded by Denmark at COP26. The Alliance aims
to accelerate uptake of offshore wind.
U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry said the United States and China are “fully engaged” at
COP27. He had met with China’s top climate official Xie Zhenhua a day earlier, which
was taken as a sign of thawed relations and potential progress on climate issues. 
The Egyptian COP27 Presidency and the International Union for Conservation of
Nature launched the Enhancing Nature-based Solutions for an Accelerated Climate
Transformation (ENACT) program with the goal of protecting at least 1 billion people
and 2.4 billion hectares of healthy ecosystems, while restoring 350 million hectares
of damaged ecosystems. 
 The EU, along with France, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark launched an
initiative that will dedicate more than $1 billion in climate funding to help countries
in Africa boost their resilience in the face of the accelerating impact of global
warming. European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans said the fund will
combine “existing and new programs,” and $50 million will go toward loss and
damage.

Notable Quotes

Inger Andersen (@andersen_inger), Executive Director, UN Environment Programme

“If we invest in nature and nature’s infrastructure, forests, coral reefs, mangroves,
coastal forests, well, it protects us from high storms. It provides habitat for
species, but it also stores carbon. So, it has both a mitigation and an adaptation
dimension.”
“Some [pledges aimed at protecting forests] are beginning to roll off the belt onto
reality. But there’s a reason why Egypt framed this as the ‘implementation COP’;
because those pledges and promises have to see real action.”

Adriana da Silva Maffioletti, Climate Activist, President-Elect, Brazil

“Indigenous people have the most sustainable way to live. So, we must learn from
them and not put them aside in this fight. We protect over 80 per cent of the
planet’s biodiversity.” 
“This is not something for tomorrow. This is not something for 10 years [from
now]. This is something for us to do right now. The climate crisis is affecting and
killing people right now. So, we must act now.”

Wael Aboulgmagd (@Wael_Aboulmagd), Special Representative for the COP27

President, Egypt
“We would have hoped under the current circumstances to see more willingness
to cooperate and accommodate than we are seeing in the reports that we receive
from the various negotiating tracks, I reserve the verdict, maybe some countries
and delegations will show more openness and accommodations as the last minute
comes.”

Ruanna Hayes, Negotiator, Alliance of Small Island States

 “There’s real concern about how things are progressing across the board. Of
course, loss and damage is a key issue, the key outcome that the Alliance is
looking for from this COP and things are still not coming together.”

Ace & Civil Society Day and Energy Day (November 15)

Ace & Civil Society Day will be dedicated to integrating the views and perspectives of
civil society by identifying challenges, networking, and developing multi-stakeholder
partnership opportunities.

Energy Day will consider all aspects of energy and climate change, including renewable
energy and energy transformation, with a specific focus on just transition in the energy
sector and the potential of green hydrogen.

Notable Events

The COP27 presidency released a draft document with the summary of possible
elements proposed by parties for inclusion in the conference’s final outcome. The
document contains items including multilateralism, scaling up of renewable energy
in the energy transition process, adaptation, the need for funding arrangements to
address loss and damage, and climate accountability.
Seven countries pledged new funding for the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF)
and Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF). Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland,
Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the Walloon Region of Belgium announced a total
of $105.6 billion in funding combined. They also emphasized the need for even more
financial support for the Global Environment Facility funds targeting the adaptation
needs of low-income and low-lying nations. Belgium, Canada, France, and the United
States expressed political support for both funds. The funding adds to the $413
million that 12 donor countries pledged to the LDCF at COP26. The LDCF supports 46
Least Developed Countries in climate adaptation financing. The SCCF similarly
supports Small Island Development States.
In an address, the ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda to the U.N., Conrad Hunte,
said the island nation won’t leave the summit without a fund for climate-related loss
and damage. “As we see the inaction of many developed countries, the potential to
 stall talks and land a devastating blow for us as small island developing states is
looming. Antigua and Barbuda will not leave here without a loss and damage fund.”
The United States, Canada, Japan, and several European countries announced a $20
billion climate financing deal with Indonesia that would aid the country, one of the
world’s largest consumers of coal, in its transition to renewable power. The deal was
announced at the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, and involves Indonesia capping its
carbon emissions at 290 million tons and upping its use of wind and solar power by
2030. At COP27, where the deal received great attention, U.S. climate envoy John
Kerry said, “We’ve built a platform for cooperation that can truly transform
Indonesia’s power sector from coal to renewables and support significant economic
growth.”
European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans said the EU is on track to
exceed its original plan to cut emissions by 55 percent (measured from 1990 levels) by
2030, with a new goal of over 57 percent.
The COP27 Presidency announced the Africa Just & Affordable Energy Transition
Initiative (AJAETI). It has set three primary goals by 2027: (1) to offer technical and
policy support to facilitate affordable energy for at least 300 million people in Africa;
(2) transition 300 million of the 970 million people who do not have access to clean
cooking fuels; and (3) increase the share of renewable electricity generation by 25
percentage points and achieve a power sector based on renewables by 2063.

Notable Quotes

Inger Andersen (@andersen_inger), Executive Director, UN Environment Programme

“We’ve barely scratched the surface. And the one year since Glasgow, frankly, has
been a year of climate procrastination. By 2030, we need to reduce emissions by
between 30 to 45 per cent, but since COP26 we’ve shaved off one per cent. So, we
have a long way to go.”
“The current policies take us to a 2.8 degrees world…It is important that we have
a conversation about emissions reduction and who carries the load. The G20,
which are meeting this very week… have a collective responsibility for 75 per cent
of all emissions.”

Jim Skea, Scientist, UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

 “Half the world’s emissions are now covered by climate legislation. A fifth of the
world’s emissions is covered by carbon prices. So, people haven’t quite used all
the tools yet, but they’ve got [them] on the workbench. And if people have enough
willpower to do it, big things can happen.” 
“We need to see gas use to be 45 per cent lower by 2050. That’s a 2 per cent
reduction per year. And frankly, existing gas fields will deplete faster than that.”
Francesco La Camera, (@flacamera), Director General, International Renewable
Energy Agency
“Today we have less than one-third renewable, two-thirds of fossil fuel in the
energy system. We will have a completely different situation in 2050 where
renewables and clean energy will be the more than two-thirds of energy…
everything is changing.”
“The Ukraine crisis has certified the end of an energy system centralized on fossil
fuels. Governments have suddenly discovered that we cannot have 80 percent of
the country dependent on fossil fuel and everyone wants now to go for a system
that could be more independent.”

Heffa Schuecking, Director, Urgenwald

“We see new fossil fuel projects in 48 out of 55 African countries and these
projects can be traced back to 200 companies. While the discussions are ongoing
here at COP, we see a disconnect with what is happening in Egypt and in the rest
of Africa. In Egypt alone, we have 55 companies prospecting for new gas
discovery.”

Odudu-Abasi James Asuquo, Climate Activist, Nigeria

“My community needs a lot of help. Governments need to wake up. Climate
change is not a statistic, it’s a reality. For me, it’s my daily life. I lost my parents; I
lost my people. I don’t have a life. I don’t even have a home to go back to because
there’s no land. The water is polluted. The air is polluted. So, climate change is my
reality.” 
“They are talking about 2030 and I don’t have that. They are talking about 2024. I
am not sure about that either. My community needs the help now and today is the
day for action.”

Gender Day and Water Day (November 14)

Water Day will discuss issues related to sustainable water resource management, water
scarcity, drought, cross boundary cooperation and improvement of early warning
systems.

Gender Day will promote gender sensitive and responsive policies, strategies, and actions
while shedding light on the woman’s role in adapting to climate change.

Notable Events

The COP27 Presidency launched the African Women’s Climate Adaptive Priorities
(AWCAP) to highlight the disproportionate toll climate disasters take on women and
children. The initiative “aims to increase opportunities for women in the just
transition to a green economy, as well as to promote gender-sensitive perspectives in
adaptation and mitigation, while also promoting educational and behavioral change
on women and climate change” by linking key ministers from various countries to
one another to capacity-build and to divert more resources to ensuring women secure
economic opportunities in green transition efforts.
Water Day saw the COP27 Presidency launch the Action on Water, Adaptation, and
Resilience (AWARe) initiative. Egypt will host the Pan-African Center for Water
Climate Adaptation in marshaling financing, technology, and knowledge
transfer/outreach to achieve three mains goals: (1) “[d]ecrease water losses
worldwide and improve water supply;” (2) “[p]ropose and support implementing
mutually agreed policy and methods for cooperative water-related adaptation action
and its co-benefits;” and (3) “[p]romote cooperation and interlinkages between water
and climate action in order to achieve Agenda 2030, in particular SDG 6 [ensuring
water for all].”
Separately, the G7 countries launched a “Global Shield” program with more than
$200 million in initial funding. The aim is to rapidly deploy funds toward insurance
and disaster protection following floods, droughts, and hurricanes in vulnerable
countries.

Notable Quotes

Amina Mohammed (@AminaJMohammed), Deputy Secretary-General, United

Nations
 “Women and girls are essential, effective and powerful leaders to address the
climate crisis. But they remain largely undervalued and underestimated with
limited access to training extension services and the technology necessary for
effective adaptation to the impacts of climate change… There’s a very simple and
effective solution – put women and girls in the lead.”
Lucy Ntongal, Climate Expert, Actionaid
“The priority for mothers is water and because their husbands have left home
looking for new pastures. They will take their daughters out of school to walk for
miles to get water. Eventually, they must undergo female genital mutilation for
them to be married off. This is because the family cannot to feed extra mouths,”
“It is a forgotten crisis. But if we choose to ignore it, we are telling girls that world
leaders do not care about their future anymore. Leaders need to keep the voices of
girls and women from the Global South, living through the realities of climate
crisis, at the heart of COP27 negotiations, as they are the best people to provide
the solutions.”

Henk Ovink (@henkovink), Water Envoy, Netherlands

“For water, it is now or never. Water is the theme we find in energy, food security,
health, economics and international collaboration… We really must change our
behaviours, our attitudes, our actions, our governance and the way we organize
around water.”Gender Day will promote gender sensitive and responsive policies,
strategies, and actions while shedding light on the woman’s role in adapting to
climate change.”

Adaptation & Agriculture Day (November 12)

Adaptation & Agriculture Day will focus on the devastating climate impacts endured by
various countries and point out the fact that the world is not prepared to endure extreme
weather events.

Notable Events

The COP27 Egyptian Presidency announced the Food and Agriculture for Sustainable
Transformation (FAST) initiative to improve climate finance contributions toward
transforming food systems by 2030. Speaking about the initiative, COP27 President
 Sameh Shoukry said, “As we reach a milestone in human development, we must
ensure that our food systems are equipped to provide communities around the world
with food that is produced in an inclusive, responsible, and sustainable way. With 43
million people suffering of hunger each year, this is a wake-up call for
implementation. Initiatives such as FAST are critical in today’s world, where
geopolitical shifts and extreme weather events can cause massive disruption to food
supply chains that hurt the world’s poorest and exacerbate hunger and malnutrition.”
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization will facilitate the voluntary collaboration
among stakeholder groups.
COP27 President Sameh Shoukry met with indigenous peoples to discuss their
inclusion in the conference’s outcomes. Zé Bajaga Apurinã, chief of the Apurinã, an
indigenous community in a southern Amazon state in Brazil, said in an interview,
“Climate change has affected the lives of indigenous people seriously. We lost a lot of
lives and lands because of floods and forest fires, all caused by climate change.” He
asserted that loss and damage “should have had been included years ago [in COP
agendas], but it is good it is now on the agenda in COP27.” 
Mexico pledged to cut its emissions by 35 percent by 2030, which is higher than its
previous target of 22 percent. It is one of the few countries at COP27 to have
announced an improvement in its targets thus far.
U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry said the United States is
“totally supportive” of plans to address loss and damage.
The COP27 Presidency announced the Climate Responses for Sustaining Peace
(CRSP) initiative to address the intersection of climate and peacebuilding which over
the next five years seeks to aid in the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, the Africa’s Silencing the Guns
initiative, and the African Climate Change and Resilient Development Strategy and
Action Plan (2022-2032). COP27 President Sameh Shoukry said of the initiative,
“Africa contributes the least to the climate crisis but is disproportionately affected in
terms of how it unfolds and hurts communities. The devastating impact of climate
change combined with conflict has far-reaching implications across the continent.
CRSP will help deliver action on this critical issue as it addresses the potential risks
posed by climate change for sustainable peace and development.”

Notable Quotes
Qu Dongyu (@FAODG), Director-General, Food and Agriculture Organization of the
UN
“Sustainable food cold chains can make an important difference in our collective
efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. All stakeholders can help
implement the findings of this report, to transform agrifood systems to be more
efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable – for better
production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life for all, leaving
no one behind.”

Zitouni Ould-Dada (@ZitouniOuldDada), Deputy Director of the Climate and

Environment Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN
“We can’t continue with the current model of producing food and then degrading
the soil, declining biodiversity, affecting the environment. No. It must be
sustainable… We can’t produce the food to feed and nourish a growing population
with the current model, with the threat of climate change. We can’t.” 
“We have around 828 million people who go hungry every day. And yet, we throw
away a third of the food that we produce for human consumption. We need to
change our mindset, our production model, so that we don’t lose and waste
food.” 
“Innovation in the broader sense like precision farming where you have drip
irrigation combined with renewable energy so that you have efficiency. But also,
innovation harnessing traditional knowledge of smallholder farmers is also
important, because it is happening all the time.”

Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim (hindououmar), Climate Activist, Chad

“Right to territories, right to resources, human rights, indigenous people rights,
loss and damage must all be in the negotiation texts… 1.5 [degrees Celsius] is not
negotiable; that is what we are here standing for.” 
“We want climate finance to go directly to indigenous peoples, we don’t want it to
be for fossil fuels. We want it in the ground to plant trees, to protect the forests,
and to give people the livelihoods they deserve. We cannot accept the polluters to
continue sucking the blood of Mother Earth.”

Nnimmo Bassey (@NnimmoB), Climate Activist, Nigeria

“Africa is being assaulted right now. Mining and oil and gas companies sinking
their dirty machines across the continent destroying, killing, stealing. This is the
 kind of colonialism that cannot be tolerated.”

Decarbonization Day (November 11)

Decarbonization Day aims to discuss carbon-reducing approaches and policies and

showcase technologies that aim to facilitate the transition and paradigm shift towards a
low carbon economy.

Notable Events

The United States doubled its pledge to the Adaptation Fund to $100 million and
announced over $150 million in additional funds to accelerate the President’s
Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE) efforts across Africa. 
U.S. President Joe Biden gave an address at COP27, casting the United States as a
climate leader and touting the climate commitments in the Inflation Reduction Act.
He emphasized that the United States immediately rejoined the Paris Agreement
during his administration and will continue to take bold action. He also announced
that the United States, the EU, and Germany would provide $500 million to Egypt to
finance its transition to green energy.
Under the Breakthrough Agenda originally launched at COP26, countries
representing more than half of global GDP and emissions pledged during
Decarbonization Day to accomplish by COP28 a set of 25 steps to accelerate
decarbonization across five sectors (power, road transport, steel, hydrogen, and
agriculture), including, for example, agreeing to a date to phase out gasoline-powered
vehicles.

Notable Quotes

Selwin Hart (@SelwinHart), Special Adviser and Assistant Secretary-General, United

Nations
“There is no argument around the science at all. But of course, developing
countries, especially the poorest, will need assistance to make the transition to a
renewable energy future.” 
“We just need to [triple the world’s energy capacity] again this decade. The
technologies are there, the finance is there. It just needs to be deployed in the
 right place, where the emissions are and where the population growth and energy
demand is.”
Olga Algayerova (@algayerova), Executive Secretary, United Nations European
Economic Commission
“Adopting circular economy approaches to help reduce needs for new materials
will be crucial in [a carbon-neutral economy]. Solutions must be implemented
without delay.”
“The only way we can pull in these aspirations and hopes of the vulnerable
people, including those in Africa, is for [negotiators] to articulate a
comprehensive vision that helps progress, particularly around adaptation, loss
and damage and justice.”

Joe Biden (@POTUS), President, United States

“I came to the presidency determined to make transformational changes that are
needed, that America needs to make and we have to do for the rest of the world,
to overcome decades of opposition and obstacles of progress on this issue alone…
to reestablish the United States as a trustworthy and committed global leader on
climate.”
“To permanently bend the emissions curve, every nation needs to step up… At
this gathering, we must renew and raise our climate ambitions. The United States
is acting. Everyone has to act. It’s a duty and responsibility of global leadership.”
“Russia’s war only enhances the urgency and need to transition the world off its
dependence on fossil fuels… To use energy as a weapon to hold the global
economy hostage must stop.”

Youth & Future Generations Day and Science Day (November 10)

Youth & Future Generations Day will provide an opportunity to ensure that youth
perspectives are reflected across all areas of the climate agenda, and to showcase youth
success stories and challenges.

Science Day consisted of panel discussions and events to engage with the science
community and academia to ensure that climate conversations and actions are based on
solid and credible science, and to further discuss roles of academia in support for global
action to tackle climate change.
Notable Events

UN Development Programme chief Achim Steiner warned that more than fifty of the
poorest developing countries are in danger of defaulting on their debt and becoming
bankrupt unless wealthy nations offer assistance. “If we have more shocks – interest
rates go up further, borrowing becomes more expensive, energy prices, food prices – it
becomes almost inevitable that we will see a number of these economies unable to
pay,” he said. 
The UN Race to Resilience Initiative launched the Insurance Adaptation Acceleration
Campaign, which aims to mobilize 3,000 insurance companies by next year’s COP. Its
objective is to scale the industry’s ability to put forward meaningful climate risk
reduction and pursue innovative, public-private partnerships that pursue the
protection of vulnerable populations. The campaign also launched a data explorer to
track progress of adaptation implementation.
Global Mangrove Alliance, in collaboration with the UN Climate Change High-level
Champions, called for signatories to the “Mangrove Breakthrough” which supports
the Sharm El Sheikh Adaptation Agenda in recognizing the need to sustainably
protect 15 million hectares of mangroves by 2030.

Notable Quotes

Sameh Shoukry (@MfaEgypt), COP27 President, Egypt

“The impacts of climate change have significant effects on the health, nutrition,
education and the future of young people, meanwhile youth stands to be the most
impacted by the decisions we take at the climate process. Thus, they should be
considered a natural ally and partner in driving climate action.”

Samuel Chijoke, Climate Activist, Nigeria

“The world is quiet about climate-induced loss and damages. In my country, 2.5
million homes have been lost and over a thousand lives. Climate change has
caused more unemployment, loss of livelihoods and an increase in poverty. What
hope is there for the African continent?”

Bruno Rodriguez (@Brunorodok), Climate Activist, Argentina

“There is an issue that has been put aside COP after COP. The fact that we are in
an African country this year is very significant. It is a scientific fact that countries
 with the least economic resources and with barely any responsibility for
emissions are the ones that end up suffering the most… It is about reparation and
social justice.”
Alab Mirasol Ayroso, Climate Activist, Philippines
“As a climate activist, my fight for climate justice is a fight for social justice. It is
our human right to live, breathe, eat and speak freely, we need these human rights
in the world with climate justice.”

Simon Stiell (@simonstiell), Executive Secretary, United Nations Climate Change

“Adaptation alone cannot keep up with the impacts of climate change, which are
already worse than predicted… Adaptation actions are still crucial and are critical
to upgrade small-scale, fragmented and reactive efforts. But the potential to
adapt to climate change is not limitless. And they will not prevent all losses and
damage that we’ve seen.”
The less we mitigate, the more we have to adapt. So, investing in migration is a
way of reducing the need to invest on adaptation and resilience. That means
tabling stronger national climate action plans – and doing so now.”

Johan Rockström (@jrockstrom), Co-Chair, Earth League

“As science advances, we have more evidence of massive costs, risks, but also
global benefits of reduced loss and damage, through an orderly safe landing of the
world within the Paris [Agreement’s] climate range. To succeed requires global
collaboration and speed at an unprecedented scale.”

Finance Day (November 9)

Finance Day will address several aspects of the climate finance ecosystem, including
innovative financial instruments, tools and policies that have potential to enhance
access, and contributions to the energy transition.

Notable Events

In discussions regarding climate finance and justice, the United Kingdom said it
would allow some debt payment deferrals for countries hit by climate disasters, and
Austria and New Zealand offered funding for loss and damage. 
 U.S. climate envoy John Kerry announced a new global carbon credit trading
initiative, called the “energy transition accelerator,” that will assist developing
countries in adopting cleaner forms of energy. The initiative will deliver trillions of
dollars of investment to poorer nations in an effort to cut fossil fuel emissions and
reduce the severity of climate disasters. 
UN Climate Change High-Level Champions called for action across three Sharm el-
Sheikh Adaptation Outcomes for Finance: for public finance actors to increase the
volume and share of adaptation and resilience finance, for private finance actors to
help mobilize the $140 billion to $300 billion needed annually by 2030, and for
insurers to institutionalize a longer-term industry approach to adaptation and
resilience.
China climate envoy Xie Zhenhua remarked that it is “the responsibility of the US” to
“clear the barriers” in reconciliation and have productive climate talks. Zhenhua also
said that China would potentially participate in contributing funds to developing
countries and assist with climate-related loss and damage.
Leaders from Western Indian nations shared progress on the Great Blue Wall, which
had been officially launched at COP26 in Glasgow. Two seascapes (Quirimbas
Seascape in Mozambique and Tanga Pemba Seascape in Tanzania) were officially
designated.

Notable Quotes

Antonio Pedro, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Africa

“We need to change the African narratives from a country of challenges to a
continent of opportunities… We must invest in the green recovery, ensure just
energy transition to universal access to electricity. We must build agriculture and
food systems.” 
“Adaptation is Africa’s primary concern, and this should be reflected in the
structuring of conditional climate finance, requiring at least 50% of available
finance to support climate change adaptation in Africa. Based on the rich African
natural capital, the blue economy offers important opportunities, and the Great
Brue Wall initiative represents a fantastic lever.” 
“It’s about moving from demonstrating what is possible to rising to another level
of scale and ambition so that we have a combination of nature conservation and
the empowerment of local communities to have sustainable livelihoods.”
Mahmoud Mohieldin (@UNenvoyMM), UN Climate Change High-Level Champion,
Egypt
“Oceans are the world’s largest heat sink; they absorb around 90% of the excess
heat caused by climate change and they are also very efficient carbon sinks,
absorbing 23% of human-caused carbon emissions. Oceans are our biggest ally in
the fight against climate action, but unfortunately, we are compromising this
solution by not protecting them.”
“We can now show that a meaningful pipeline of investible opportunities does
exist across the economies that need finance most… We now need a creative
collaboration between project developers and public, private and concessionary
finance, to unlock this investment potential and turn assets into flows.”

Wavel Ramkalawan (@StateHouseSey), President, Seychelles 

“Like other islands, we contribute less to the destruction of the planet, yet we
suffer the most. For example, the carbon emissions of Seychelles are very low, and
we clean up through our mangroves and seagrass meadows, thus making us a zero
contributor to the destruction of the planet, yet our islands are disappearing and
our coasts are being destroyed.” 
“The Great Blue Wall Initiative is significantly deemed as the nexus of climate
change adaptation, conservation, and the Blue Economy – it is the solution to
further longevity and prosperity of a ‘Blue’ world.”
“It is up to us to build this ‘Great Blue Wall’ and to build resilience through
common actions in the face of common threats, for after all, we share the basic
needs to feed our people, our families now and in the future. In order for this need
to be effectively satisfied, it is imperative that our environmental integrity
remains intact.”

Inger Andersen (@andersen_inger), Executive Director, UN Environment Programme

“Years of warnings about the impacts of climate change have become a reality. If
we do not rapidly cut emissions in line with the Paris agreement, we will be in
deeper trouble.”
“The buildings sector represents 40 percent of Europe’s energy demand, 80
percent of it from fossil fuels. This makes the sector an area for immediate action,
investment, and policies to promote short and long-term energy security.” 
 “The solution [to rising fossil fuel costs] may lie in governments directing relief
towards low and zero-carbon building investment activities through financial and
non-financial incentives.”
Al Gore (@algore), Founder of the Climate Reality Project and Former Vice President
of the United States
“Two months ago in September, at the UN General Assembly, the Secretary-
General told us about the heat waves in Europe, the floods in Pakistan, the severe
droughts… and he linked it all correctly as the price of humanity’s fossil fuel
addiction.”
“The potential for wind and solar is 400 times larger than Africa’s total fossil fuel
reserves and it comes pollution-free and creates more jobs, but there is a finance
gap… That is why there is so much attention at this COP to changing the global
capital allocation system.”

Luisa Neubauer (@Luisamneubauer), Climate Activist, Germany

“Don’t come here and talk of climate action as long as you [world leaders] engage
in any new fossil fuel infrastructure across the globe. Don’t come here and speak
of climate justice as fossil fuel funding is exploding. Don’t come here to try to
explain that money might be short for adaptation and loss and damage while
fossil fuel investments around the world are skyrocketing, day by day.”

Implementation Summit (November 7-8)

The Implementation Summit will include an official opening ceremony, round tables and
high-level side events and delivery of national statements.

Roundtable Sessions (November 8, 12:00 PM UTC+2:00): Investing in the Future of Energy:

Green Hydrogen, Water Security, and Climate Change and the Sustainability of Vulnerable
Communities

The Government of Egypt will convene three high-level round tables to be attended by
Heads of State and Governments, Heads of observer organizations and specially invited
guests. Discussions will pertain to climate adaptation and mitigation, transitioning to
hydrogen energy sources, and water security.
 At the Investing in the Future of Energy: Green Hydrogen roundtable, Egypt and
Belgium announced the launch of the Global Renewable Hydrogen Forum to foster
dialogue between hydrogen-producing countries and hydrogen-consuming ones—as
well as with the private sector and other key organizations. Egypt and Norway also
announced a joint green hydrogen project, whose first phase includes the
establishment of a major plant in Egypt.
At the Climate Change and the Sustainability of Vulnerable Communities roundtable,
the devastating floods in Pakistan were held up as an example of the need for
adaptation. Private sector groups called upon governments to assist in supporting
adaptation efforts.
At the Water Security roundtable, focus turned to Sustainable Development Goal 6, to
“[e]nsure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.”
Parties showcased examples of projects to this end, and the issue of scalability was
discussed.

Delivery of National Statements (November 8, 10:30 AM UTC+02:00)

62 Heads of State and Government will deliver their national statements.

Kausea Natano (@TuvaluPM), Prime Minister, Tuvalu

“The climate emergency can be reduced to two basic concepts – time and
temperature. It is getting too hot and there is barely time to slow and reverse it.” 
“The warming seas are starting to swallow our lands — inch by inch. But the
world’s addiction to oil, gas and coal can’t sink our dreams under the waves. We,
therefore, unite with a hundred Nobel Peace Prize laureates and thousands of
scientists worldwide and urge world leaders to join the Fossil Fuel Non-
Proliferation Treaty to manage a just transition away from fossil fuels.”

Shehbaaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz), Prime Minister, Pakistan

“This COP rings an alarm bell for humanity; it is the only platform where the
survival of the human race as a goal still holds promise. It is also the forum where
we as vulnerable countries take our case to the rich and the resourced to build a
road map to crucial policy resets needed in a world that is burning up faster than
our capacity for recovery.” 
 “The world is burning up faster than our capacity for recovery… The current
financing gap is too high to sustain any real recovery needs of those on the
frontlines of climate catastrophe.” 
“Climate finance must be clearly defined, with new additional and sustained
resources through a clear mechanism that meets the needs of developing
countries with the speed and scale that’s required.”
Gastone Browne (@gastonbrowne), Prime Minister, Antigua & Barbuda
“It is about time that these [oil and gas] companies are made to pay a global
carbon tax on their profits as a source of funding for loss and damage. Profligate
producers of fossil fuels have benefitted from extortionate profits at the expense
of human civilization. While they are profiting, the planet is burning.”

Mohammad Shtayyeh (@DrShtayyeh), Prime Minister, Palestine

“It is imperative for the countries of the [Middle East] region and the world to
change the behavior of governments, the private sector, industries and
individuals, to meet the challenge of climate change, and to adapt to its
repercussions, based on the fact that they are more developmental and economic
threats than mere environmental threats.”

Volodymyr Zelenskyy (@ZelenskyyUa), President, Ukraine

“There can be no effective climate policy without the peace. The Russian war has
brought about an energy crisis that has forced dozens of countries to resume coal-
fired power generation in order to lower energy costs for their people, to lower
prices that are shockingly rising due to deliberate Russian actions.”
“There are still many for whom climate change is just rhetoric or marketing, not
real action. They are the ones who hamper the implementation of climate goals;
they are the ones who in their offices make fun of those who fight to save life on
the planet… They are the ones who start wars of aggression when the planet
cannot afford a single gunshot, because it needs global joint action.”

Charles Michel (@eucopresident), President, European Council

“The Kremlin has decided to use the energy sector as a weapon. They are aiming
this tool as a target toward Europe. The Kremlin has decided to instrumentalize
the food industry and fertilizers against us, and this directly impacts developing
countries. This war is teaching us we need to fade away from fossil fuels.”
 Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen), President, European Commission
“Let us not take the highway to hell. Let us earn the clean ticket to heaven that is
our responsibility. And for Europe, the answer is REPowerEU. We are not just
cutting our dependency on Russian fossil fuels… we are massively accelerating
the rollout of renewables.”
“Those in need of the developing world must be supported in adapting to a
harsher climate. We must urge our partners in the global north to stand by their
climate finance commitments in the global south.”

Xie Zhenhua, President Xi Jinping’s Special Representative; and Special Envoy for
Climate Change, China
“No matter how much the external environment changes, and no matter how
many challenges we face, China has firm determination to achieve this vision of
carbon neutrality.”

Delivery of National Statements (November 7, 2:00 PM UTC+02:00)

48 Heads of State and Government will deliver their national statements.

António Guterres (@antonioguterres), Secretary-General, United Nations

“The clock is ticking. We are in the fight of our lives. And we are losing… We are
on a highway to climate hell with our foot still on the accelerator.” 
“Humanity has a choice: cooperate or perish. It is either a Climate Solidarity Pact
– or a Collective Suicide Pact.” 
“It is time for international solidarity across the board. Solidarity that respects all
human rights and guarantees a safe space for environmental defenders and all
actors in society to contribute to our climate response. Let’s not forget that the
war on nature is in itself a massive violation of human rights.” 
“The global climate fight will be won or lost in this crucial decade – on our
watch.” 

Mohamed bin Zayed (@MohamedBinZayed), President, United Arab Emirates

“The UAE is known as a responsible supplier of energy and will continue to play
this role for as long as the world needs oil and gas. We will focus on lowering
carbon emissions emanating from this sector.”
Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein (@KingAbdullahII), King, Jordan
“Rising temperatures and water scarcity have put heavy pressure on our limited
resources – resources strained further by an unnatural population growth driven
by the massive influx of refugees.” 
“Good or bad, the world’s climate is indivisible; so must we be. In the fight for life
on Earth, no one is a bystander; every contribution counts. COP27 has brought us
together, to link forces and stand our ground.”

Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog), President, Israel

Climate change “is an issue that is not only existential for all of us, it’s also an
issue that transcends politics and borders, and is perhaps the only issue that can
unite humankind.” 
“Israel is prepared to lead the effort toward regional climate resilience. I intend to
spearhead the development of what I term a Renewable Middle East – a regional
ecosystem of sustainable peace.”

Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron), President, France

“Taking action for the climate means regulating, and regulating at the
international level. If we don’t set a price for carbon, there will be no transition.
Therefore, we need to factor the environment in the cost of investment, in our
regional investment, in our regional markets, and in our trade relations. There
can be no credible and sustainable environmental action if there is no social and
climate justice.” 
“Even if our world has changed, the climate issue cannot be a balancing item of
the war unleashed by Russia on Ukrainian soil… We will not sacrifice our
commitments to the climate due to the Russian threat in terms of energy so all
countries must continue to uphold all their commitments.”

Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak), Prime Minister, United Kingdom

“When we began our COP Presidency, just one third of the global economy was
signed up to net zero. Today it’s 90 percent. And for our part, the U.K., which was
the first major economy in the world to legislate for net zero, will fulfill our
ambitious commitment to reduce emissions by at least 68 per cent by 2030.”
“But I can tell you today that the United Kingdom is delivering on our
commitment of £11.6 billion [toward climate funding and reaching net zero
 emissions]. And as part of this – we will now triple our funding on adaptation to
£1.5 billion by 2025.”
“Listen to Prime Minister Mottley of Barbados, as she describes the existential
threat posed by the ravages of climate change. Or look at the devastating floods in
Pakistan where the area underwater is the same size as the whole United
Kingdom. When you see 33 million people displaced with disease rife and
spreading through the water, you know it is morally right to honour our promises.
But it is also economically right too. Climate security goes hand in hand with
energy security. Putin’s abhorrent war in Ukraine and rising energy prices across
the world are not a reason to go slow on climate change. They are a reason to act
faster.”
Macky Sall (@Macky_Sall), President, Senegal; Chair, African Union
“We have come, as Africans, to Sharm el-Sheikh, in order to save our planet…We
are determined to make history, rather than simply be victims, passive onlookers
of history.”
“Even if Africa contributes less than 4% of greenhouse gasses, it subscribes to
frugal development of carbon, resilient to climate change, for a goal of carbon
neutrality in a reasonable timeframe. We are for a green transition that is
equitable and just, instead of decisions that jeopardize our development,
including universal access to electricity to which 600 million Africans remain
deprived.”

Mia Mottley (@miaamormottley), Prime Minister, Barbados

“We were the ones whose blood, sweat and tears financed the industrial
revolution. Are we now to face double jeopardy by having to pay the cost as a
result of those greenhouse gasses from the industrial revolution? That is
fundamentally unfair.”
“How do companies make $200 billion in profits in the last three months and not
expect to contribute at least 10 cents on every dollar to a loss a damage fund?
This is what our people expect.”
“The Global South remains at the mercy of the Global North on these issues.
What will our choice be? We have the power to act or the power to remain passive
and do nothing. I pray that we will leave Egypt with a clear understanding that
the things that are facing us today are interconnected.”
Roundtable Sessions (November 7, 1:30 PM UTC+2:00): Just Transition, Food Security, and
Innovative Finance for Climate and Development

The Government of Egypt will convene three high-level round tables to be attended by
Heads of State and Governments, Heads of observer organizations and specially invited
guests. Discussions will pertain to the integration of sustainable social and economic
development with climate change responses, resilience in agricultural productivity, and
bridging the climate finance gap. 

At the Food Security roundtable, the International Finance Corporation announced

its global food security platform, a $6 billion financing facility. The Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation pledged a $1.4 billion investment to aid smallholder farmers,
especially women, with digital technologies.
At the Innovative Finance roundtable, many leaders discussed increasing
concessional finance toward climate mitigation through IMF’s special drawing rights,
through which member states might borrow from each other’s reserves with low
interest.
At the Just Transition roundtable, participants discussed the need for funds—
especially from multilateral financing—and capacity building toward a transition to
cleaner energy that brings along disadvantaged communities.
IMAGE: Sameh Shoukry, President of the UNFCCC COP 27 climate conference, speaks on the conference’s first day on
November 06, 2022, in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

About the Author(s)

Clara Apt
Clara Apt (@claraapt25) is an Assistant Editor at Just Security.

Katherine Fang
Katherine Fang (@fang_kath) is a Student Staff Editor at Just Security. She is a graduate of Yale Law
School, where she was a Paul & Daisy Soros Fellow for New Americans. Prior to law school, she was a
Fulbright Scholar in Jordan and worked in economics research at Harvard Business School.