As a researcher working on sustainability and labour-intensive sectors such as fashion and textiles, I see every day how climate impacts are intensifying in regions that contributed least to historical emissions (Cop30’s watered-down agreements will do little for an ecosystem at tipping point, 22 November). In India, rising heat, unpredictable rainfall and water scarcity already disrupt cotton cultivation, small weaving clusters and garment production hubs. These communities are expected to adapt and decarbonise, yet they receive almost none of the meaningful support that would make such a transition viable.
The gap between what developing nations require and what is currently offered is not only a financial gap, it is also a structural gap created by unequal development. Treating climate finance as a loan-driven obligation rather than a shared responsibility undermines the very idea of a just transition. Debt cannot be the pathway to climate resilience for the global south.
