COP27 was the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference, held in November 2022 in Egypt. At the summit (held annually save for cancellation in 2020), world leaders met to discuss proposed policies tackling climate change and its impacts. The main issues that recent summits have focused on are limiting global temperature rises, infrastructure to adapt to the conditions created by climate change, and climate finance—in other words, where the money to build climate-adaptable systems will come from, and the details of its distribution. While many policies and changes to current approaches were proposed, there are a few significant takeaways from the summit. Let’s talk about them.

1: Compensation for smaller nations is at the forefront

At COP27, the United Nations Climate Conference of Parties took their first steps towards compensation for losses and damages caused by climate change. Smaller, less wealthy nations have borne the brunt of the consequence of emissions and environmental issues caused by larger nations: while the United States has the largest historical share of greenhouse gas emissions, countries in Asia and Africa, like Pakistan, have suffered flooding, droughts, heat waves, and major economic burdens resulting from such disasters. COP27 struck a deal to establish a loss and damage fund, which compensates smaller countries for the climate change impacts they have suffered. Proponents of the loss and damage fund advocate for a form of reparations: despite many nations’ low carbon footprints, they bear massive financial strain for the issues caused by other countries. This is not the first time losses and damages have been discussed at a UN Climate Summit, but it is the first time a concrete fund has been established.

2: Political and economic strife is complicating the fight against fossil fuels

While some important steps were taken at COP27, political complications changed the landscape that the summit that took place last time. Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro was voted out in favour of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, or Lula. In his time as president, Bolsonaro weakened land conservation measures and accelerated deforestation of the Amazon. Lula pledged to reverse these changes and make aggressive moves to preserve the ecosystem of the Amazon Rainforest. The United States’ presence at COP27 was also impeded by the midterm elections and climate envoy John Kerry’s positive COVID-19 test. Protests arose over the political conflict in the host country, Egypt, and Ukraine’s delegation to COP27 aimed to highlight the mass climate destruction caused by the war with Russia. Not only does war itself have incredibly detrimental impacts on the climate, but climate-vulnerable countries have also experienced food shortages due to Ukraine’s exporting of food supplies, and the mass displacement of Ukrainian residents has put greater strain on nations in need.

3: Countries want clean energy—but aren’t sure how to finance it

Not every country was on the same page at COP27, but most arrived at a consensus: clean energy is the future. The transition to clean energy will be easier for some nations, especially those with already-established renewable energy sources or a climate conducive to those sources, but countries that rely on fossil fuels have a difficult path to clean energy. The war in Ukraine has prompted global spikes in energy prices, and some countries have even increased their dependence on fossil fuels. Several deals have been struck at the last few climate summits: at COP27, a group of wealthy nations pledged $20 billion for Indonesia to transition away from coal, echoing a similar deal for South Africa at COP26 in 2021. The details still remain foggy. In the United States, a Republican legislature has massively slowed the amount of money going toward international climate change efforts, and it’s unlikely that this pledge will be met soon. For now, countries face a difficult choice between spending money they do not have on renewable energy sources, which are more expensive than ever or relying on fossil fuels indefinitely, with disastrous climate effects.

4: We aren’t on track to meet the Paris Agreement’s emission goal

Previous UN climate summits focused more on how nations plan to meet the Paris Climate Accord, a 2015 agreement by 196 parties (now 194) to limit global warming’s increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius—a number only achievable if emissions are cut by approximately 50% by 2030, and reach net zero by 2050. COP27, on the other hand, made almost no mention of the Paris Agreement, and no discussions were held on how countries might reach the numbers laid out in the climate accord. It seems unrealistic that nations will meet the Paris Agreement’s goals. But that doesn’t mean we can’t continue to phase out fossil fuels. Every fraction of a degree matters and many delegates left COP27 with hope for the next summit. As Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner, the poet and climate envoy for the Marshall Islands, said, “I wish we had got fossil fuel phase-out. But we’ve shown with the loss and damage fund that we can do the impossible. So we know we can come back [to the climate summit] next year and get rid of fossil fuels once and for all.”

5: Important details were left unresolved

There was no mention of how countries plan to abandon fossil fuels at COP27. In the tense political and economic climate, many governments seem more hesitant than ever to look to new energy sources. However, political, social, and environmental issues are deeply intertwined and have serious impacts on each other. Ironing out the fuzzy details left undetermined at COP27 is vital—and next year’s climate summit may hold some of the answers.

Works Cited

Carrington, Damian. The 1.5C climate goal died at Cop27 – but hope must not, November 20, 2022, https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/20/cop27-summit-climate-crisis-global-heating-fossil-fuel-industry.

“COP27: Pakistan prime minister Shehbaz Sharif gave an emotive address in the wake of devastating floods.” Sky News, 2022.

Evans, Simon. Analysis: Which countries are historically responsible for climate change? 2021.

Friedman, Lisa. What Is COP27? And Other Questions About the Big U.N. Climate Summit, November 11, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/article/cop27-climate-change-summit.html.

Guyer, Jonathan. The flooding in Pakistan is a climate catastrophe with political roots, August 30, 2022, https://www.vox.com/world/2022/8/30/23327725/pakistan-flooding-unprecedented-political-economic-humanitarian-crisis.

Irfan, Umair. The good and bad news for the planet after the latest UN climate talks, November 19, 2022, https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/23464353/cop27-egypt-outcome-climate-change-agreement-result-loss-damage.

Jones, Benji. Earth’s future depends on the Amazon. This month, it’s up for a vote, October 3, 2022, https://www.vox.com/down-to-earth/2022/9/29/23373427/amazon-rainforest-brazil-jair-bolsonaro-lula-deforestation.

Kottasová, Ivana. Ukraine is finding new allies in a Russian tourist hotspot, November 18, 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/18/europe/climate-ukraine-russia-war-cop27-egypt-intl/index.html.

McPhie, Tim, and Ana Crespo Parrondo. Joint Statement: South Africa Just Energy Transition Investment Plan. European Commission, 2022.

Plumer, Brad. Wealthy Nations Offer Indonesia $20 Billion to Curb Coal, November 15, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/15/climate/indonesia-coal-agreement.html.

Prakash, Aseem, and Nives Dolsak. How To Reboot Climate Policy After COP27: Five Models Of Policy Making, December 4, 2022, https://www.forbes.com/sites/prakashdolsak/2022/12/04/how-to-reboot-climate-policy-after-cop27-five-models-of-policy-making.

Sabine Kinkartz. Germany’s energy U-turn: Coal instead of gas , August 4, 2022, https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-energy-u-turn-coal-instead-of-gas/a-62709160.

Silverstein, Ken. COP27 Leaders Aim To Slow Global Deforestation Via Sovereign Carbon Credits, December 5, 2022, https://www.forbes.com/sites/kensilverstein/2022/12/05/cop27-highlights-sovereign-carbon-credits-to-help-global-south-attract-money-from-multinationals.

Surma, Katie. Activists Deplore the Human Toll and Environmental Devastation from Russia’s Unprovoked War of Aggression in Ukraine, March 4, 2022, https://insideclimatenews.org/news/04032022/activists-deplore-the-human-toll-and-environmental-devastation-from-russias-unprovoked-war-of-aggression-in-ukraine/.

Wallace-Wells, David. The World Took a Bold, Toothless Step Forward on Climate Justice, November 23, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/23/opinion/environment/cop27-climate-decarbonization.html.

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