"For decades, vulnerable countries and activist groups have demanded that rich polluter countries pay for irreparable damage from climate change. This year, there may be a breakthrough."
"GLASGOW —- For as long as there have been international climate talks, Saleemul Huq, a botanist from Bangladesh, has quietly counseled diplomats and activists on the prickliest question: What is owed to countries least responsible for the problem of global warming but most harmed by its effects — and by whom?
Year after year, calls have steadily grown louder for industrialized nations responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions already heating up the planet to own up to the problem — and pay for the damage.
This year, demands for redress have sharpened as climate justice has become a rallying cry, not just from countries in the global south, like Mr. Huq’s, but from a broad range of activists, especially young people, in the United States and Europe. They have peaked in Glasgow: As negotiations close this week, a major point of contention between rich and poor countries is whether the final summit document will acknowledge the need for a separate pool of money to address historic harms.
Known by sterile code words crafted to avoid blame, “loss and damage,” that fund would be separate from money to help poor countries adapt to a changing climate, its proponents have argued. Loss and damage is a matter of historic responsibility and would pay for irreparable losses, such as the disappearance of national territory, culture and ecosystems, they said."
Somini Sengupta reports for the New York Times November 11, 2021.
SEE ALSO:
"Who Will Pay Tops The Agenda As UN Climate Talks Approach End" (Reuters)
"Developing Nations Say They're Owed For Climate Damage. Richer Nations Aren't Budging" (NPR)
"‘Loss and Damage’ a Top Concern at COP26 as Legal Questions Loom" (Bloomberg Environment)
"Egypt To Host COP27 International Climate Conference In 2022 -Ministry" (Reuters)
"Dubai Ruler Says UAE To Host COP28 Climate Conference In 2023" (Reuters)
"Rich Countries Still Don’t Want To Pay Their Climate Change Tab" (Vox)
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