AWFULLY, today’s world is confronted with massive climate challenges.
Instead of waging wars and expanding conflicts, nations must be united against climate vulnerability—a mega global challenge. To effectively counter climate aggression, humanity needs to act with unity on multiple fronts, including transitioning to renewable energy, improving energy efficiency, adopting sustainable transportation, transforming food systems, protecting and restoring natural ecosystems and fostering international cooperation.
To counter climate change in unity, humanity must focus on several key steps. To address climate change, we have to vastly raise our ambition at all levels. Much is happening around the world – investments in renewable energy have soared. But more needs to be done. The world must transform its energy, industry, transport, food, agriculture and forestry systems to ensure that we can limit global temperature rise. With a climate cataclysm looming, the pace and scale of current climate action plans are wholly insufficient to effectively tackle climate change. Increasingly frequent and intense extreme weather events are already impacting every region on Earth. Rising temperatures will escalate these hazards further, posing grave risks. In this regard, a significant reduction in emissions is crucial, which involves using sustainable transportation options.
To achieve a clear path to net-zero emissions, humanity needs policy cohesion. Since November 1994, UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change, the UN’s climate change agency, the UNFCCC Secretariat (UN Climate Change), supports the global response to the threat of climate change. The UNFCCC is a treaty with universal membership, currently including 198 countries known as Parties. The historic Paris Agreement provides an opportunity for countries to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise below 2 degree Celsius. It entered into force on 4 November 2016. In the agreement, all countries agreed to work to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius. Implementation of the Paris Agreement is essential for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and provides a roadmap for climate actions that will reduce emissions and build climate resilience.
Notably, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emphasizes that deep, rapid and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are essential in all sectors, beginning now and continuing throughout this decade. To limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, emissions must already be decreasing and need to be cut by almost half by 2030, just seven years away. Urgent and transformative action is crucial, going beyond mere plans and promises. It requires raising ambition, covering entire economies and moving towards climate-resilient development, while outlining a clear path to achieve net-zero emissions. Time is running out and immediate measures are necessary to avoid catastrophic consequences and secure a sustainable future for generations to come.
While the G7 nations as major economies and historically significant contributors to global emissions, can play a crucial role in mitigating climate challenges. They can achieve this through several key actions. Firstly, they can commit to urgent, ambitious emission reduction targets to keep global warming below 1.5°C. Secondly, they can diversify their energy portfolios, shifting away from fossil fuels toward renewable energy sources. Yet most importantly, ‘’the G7 should strongly support the Paris Agreement and Glasgow Climate Pact, including by specifying short-term one-year timelines to ensure all G7 members meet their net zero goals by 2050; include similar short-term timelines to end all fossil fuel subsidies..’’
Also, international donors must play a crucial role in climate change initiatives by providing funding, expertise and networks. This support amplifies the impact of climate projects, often focusing on technical assistance to strengthen climate programs and achieve targets. While the goal of $100 billion in annual climate finance was pledged, the actual delivery in 2022 was $54.6 billion, according to OECD DAC countries. This support is vital for these nations to transition to low-carbon economies and build resilience against the impacts of climate change. Both the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank have played a significant role, particularly in developing countries.
Today, climate change demands unity and collective action. Needless to say, since 2015, Pakistan’s experience serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need for climate action. Pakistan, being one of the most vulnerable countries to climate-related disaster, is on the frontlines of this battle. Rising temperatures, melting glaciers, accompanied with heavy rainfalls during monsoon seasons are devastating our nation, threatening lives, livelihoods, infrastructure, particularly severely affecting our hydro and agro-economics.
Amidst growing climate vulnerabilities, India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) must be a valid concern for the international community as it is a grave and serious violation of a bilateral treaty framed by international law. By no means, this suspension act comes within India’s sovereignty rights, rather this is a callous unilateral move that is unacceptable to Pakistan. Pakistan considers any manipulation or restriction of water supplies as a direct act of aggression. For Islamabad, the looming water crisis led by climate change effect has upped the ante.The IWT can only be terminated through a ratified agreement.
To conclude, there is a growing urge for the global community to come together against climate change, support vulnerable nations like Pakistan and ensure a livable future for generations to come. By pooling our resources, sharing knowledge and implementing sustainable practices, we can mitigate the impacts of climate change and build a more resilient future. Against this backdrop, at the UN’s forum, Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has rightly emphasized that developing nations need debt-relief and access to grant-based resources to achieve sustainable development goals, particularly Pakistan’s commitment to the 2030 agenda of inclusive growth and climate resilience.
—The writer, based in Pakistan, an independent IR & International Law analyst, also an expert in Conflict and Peace Studies (with special focus on Palestine, Kashmir), is member of European Consortium of Political Research (ECPR), including the Washington Foreign Law Society/American Society of International Law.
