The United Nations climate summit in Egypt this month broke ground with a new agreement to compensate poor nations for the effects of global warming. The creation of a loss and damage fund is an important, if overdue, step toward climate justice and one of the top agenda items at the COP27 summit.
Developing nations have long sought help from rich countries as they bear the brunt of the impacts from the overheating of the planet such as droughts, heat waves and floods, even though they are responsible for virtually none of the emissions causing climate change. Yet for years the United States and other wealthy, industrialized nations have refused to address the harm from their pollution. Many of the details of the fund are yet to be worked out, but it’s a first step toward accountability.
The positive news of the fund, however, was overshadowed by the disappointing lack of action by world leaders, who again failed to do what’s necessary to stop the root cause of the crisis: the burning of fossil fuels. Until we move decisively to end the use of fossil fuels, the debt to poorer nations will continue to grow.
