From 12 to 18 November, the BIC will be present in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, to closely monitor and follow the discussions on the COP27. The summit began with a breakthrough after countries agreed for the first time in the history to include loss and damage as one of the priorities. The Conference has been framed as a forum for discussing actions, not promises. However, concrete outputs are yet to materialize.
Fernando Aguiar, BIC Senior Advisor on Conflict and EU Politics participated at discussions on the Gender and Africa day. He said :
“So today is the Gender and Africa day at the COP27, where many interesting discussions took place, from locally led solutions to climate change and water scarcity, to how to include a gender-responsive approach to climate. One key takeaway: solutions must be locally owned. One missing aspect: gender does not only equal to women. It must be seen as a strategic instrument addressing the different needs of women and men at conflict-settings affected by climate change.”
Clementine Lienard, BIC Climate Security Analyst, attended discussions during the Energy and Civil Society Day. She said:
“Discussions today focused on energy and more particularly on green hydrogen and energy transition. Today was also dedicated to the civil society, and we had the chance to meet many inspiring local actors. One that particularly caught our attention was Papyrus Egypt who proposes nature-based solutions on the re-use of agri-wasted from banana trees. Negotiations over the final agreement are ongoing, but devisive issues remain on the funding for loss and damage and the inclusion of the 1.5 degree Celsius target in the final text of the Summit.”
Over the next 3 days of talks, leaders and country negotiators will gather to move forward with past pledges and concretely deliver on promises. The BIC will continue to monitor the situation constantly and closely in an effort to mainstream issues such as localized solutions to climate change, climate justice, green finance, gender equality and women’s empowerment, centerpieces of its research.