“Catholic officials’ blast $300B COP29 climate finance goal as too little.” By Julie Peller Ph.D.

Green Junction

COP 29 was completed with a tone familiar to the past international treaty talks to address climate change.  The National Catholic Reporter’s Earthbeat news headline was “Catholic officials blast $300B COP29 climate finance goal as too little.” One of the major negotiating points was the amount of funding to be made available to developing countries for their clean energy transition (decarbonization) and climate impacts (effects of droughts, floods, etc.). According to climate economists, the amount required is around $1.3 trillion, which is the accountability of Western countries as the major carbon emitters. Yet, the agreed amount fell well short.

For years, COP discussions have focused on the need to limit global warming to 1.5^oC, a point that scientists view as critical to prevent natural disasters far worse than what we currently experience. The likelihood of attaining this goal is near zero since the world continues to burn record amounts of fossil fuels, engage in agricultural practices that increase greenhouse gases, damage land (e.g., deforestation), and consume too much. While frustrations are based on these realities, many experts point out important progress made by the international treaty.

Financial assistance to transition developing countries has the potential to reduce emissions equivalent to the removal of about a billion cars. Moreover, the change to clean energy will continue in advanced countries for a number of reasons: good jobs, economic growth, and higher living standards. Another positive outcome of COP 29 is a new declaration signed by 30 countries to build on existing global methane reductions by addressing organic waste decay.

Britain’s Secretary of State for Energy Security, Ed Miliband, said, “The reality of COPs is that they offer multiple truths about the state of climate politics and the world. Some are optimistic, others less so. Yet, for me there is one that stands out. The clean-energy transition is happening and it is unstoppable because economic prosperity and tackling the climate crisis now point in the same direction.”

Julie Peller, Ph.D., is an environmental chemist (Professor of Chemistry at Valparaiso University). She has been writing a weekly column called The Green Junction for the past seven years and is helping to move the call of Laudato Si to action forward. Her Research Interests are advanced oxidation for aqueous solutions, water quality analyses, emerging contaminants, air quality analyses, Lake Michigan shoreline challenges (Cladophora, water, and sediment contaminants), and student and citizen participation in environmental work.