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Friday, December 8, 2023
News and Views from the Global South
Humanitarian Emergencies
Why Climate Justice and Global Financial Reform Are Inseparable
An award-winning international development expert and a climate justice expert have called for a rethink of the global financial system that would bring reparatory justice to small, climate-vulnerable nations while offering concessionary development financing to the countries most in need of assistance. Hannah Ryder, the Chief Executive Officer of international development consultancy Development Reimagined, and Yamide Dagnet, Director of Climate Justice at the Open Society Foundations, for a side event on the margins of the Dubai Climate Talks on December 7.
COP28 Hits: Key Wins as Africa-Focused Pledges, Deals Announced
A record-breaking drought is unfolding in the Horn of Africa, where millions of people are trapped in the world’s worst acute food insecurity emergency. Food insecurity and malnutrition in West and Central Africa are on track to reach a 10-year high as coastal countries edge even closer to the debilitating effects of climate change.
Faith Pavilion Adds Spiritual Dimension to Climate Crisis Resolution
For the first time at COP28, faith has a pavilion alongside science, technology, nations, and philanthropy, allowing religious leaders from all over the world to discuss the potential for using spiritual merits to protect the earth from climate change.
Civilian Deaths in Gaza a Stain on Israel and its Allies
The pulverising of Gaza now ranks amongst the worst assaults on any civilian population in our time and age. Each day we see more dead children and new depths of suffering for innocent people enduring this hell.
Pacific Leaders Announce Largest Conservation Effort in History
Pacific people live at the nexus of oceans, climate, and food systems, and the interaction of climate and ocean is raising sea temperatures and threatening habitats and resources vital to the region’s sustenance, Palau’s President Surangel Whipps, Jr., said at the launch of an effort to protect and rejuvenate the region's ecosystems and empower communities through to the year 2050—in what is considered to be the biggest single conservation effort in history—Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity.
ECW’s Emergency Appeal for Crises Impacted Children Facing Double Tragedies
Across the globe, the number of crisis-affected school-aged children facing climate shocks amplified by climate change keeps rising. The Somalia region of Ethiopia is facing the worst drought in 40 years. Last year in Pakistan, unprecedented flooding damaged more than 26,000 schools. Tropical Cyclone Tej recently made landfall in Yemen, affecting thousands of people.
Human Rights Crucial as Wealthy Nations Reap Energy Transition Benefits
As the world converges for COP 28, the urgency of addressing climate change has never been more palpable. In an exclusive interview with IPS, Yamide Dagnet, the Director for Climate Justice at Open Society Foundations, delves into the intricate details of this pivotal conference—from the unprecedented start to key challenges and opportunities in climate finance. She offers a comprehensive and nuanced perspective on global climate discourse.
Climate Change Not Just Another Issue in Your Inbox, Leaders told
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said world leaders needed to urgently commit to three strategies: cut emissions, accelerate a just, equitable transition to renewables, and to climate justice. "The science is clear: The 1.5-degree limit is only possible if we ultimately stop burning all fossil fuels. Not reduce. Not abate. Phaseout—with a clear timeframe aligned with 1.5 degrees," he said at the opening session of COP 28 in Dubai.
Mass Protests Send Message of Solidarity with Palestinian People
To mark the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people condemning Israel’s war on Gaza, protests were held on Wednesday across the globe, from Tokyo to Manila, Tehran and Beirut, Stockholm and London, and in Harare, Johannesburg, Quezon City, and Milan.
Scale of Death & Destruction in Gaza Result of Wide-Area Explosives in Populated Areas
Resolution 2712 was approved in a context of widespread death and wholesale destruction unleashed by the conflict in Gaza and Israel. According to Israeli authorities, more than 1,200 people were killed -- including 33 children -- and thousands were injured in the abhorrent acts of terror by Hamas on 7 October. Some 250 people were also abducted, including 34 children.
Salvadoran Rural Communities Face Climate Injustice
For decades, poor fishing and farming communities in southern El Salvador have paid the price for the electricity generated by one of the country's five dams, as constant and sometimes extreme rains cause the reservoir to release water that ends up flooding the low-lying area where the families live.
This Doctor Helps Himalayan Women Ward off Cervical Cancer
While working as a doctor in the initial months of his medical career in southern India, a telephone call from his home in the Ladakh Himalayas convinced Nordan Otzer to involve himself with cervical cancer awareness.
Suicide, Another Face of the Crisis in Venezuela
In the wee hours of one morning in early November, Ernesto, 50, swallowed several glasses of a cocktail of drugs and alcohol in the apartment where he lived alone in the Venezuelan capital, ending a life tormented by declining health and lack of resources to cope as he would have liked.
Right Here, Right Now: ECW’s USD 150 Million Climate Appeal to Save Children at Risk
A catastrophic surge in the frequency, intensity, and severity of extreme weather events has placed children on the frontlines of climate emergencies. Nearly half of the world’s children, or one billion, live in countries at extremely high risk from the effects of the climate crisis. Most of these children face multiple vulnerabilities.
Dear World Leaders, Are You Listening Now?
Another year and another UN climate change conference. As our ‘world leaders’ prepare for two air-conditioned weeks of wrangling at COP28 in Dubai later this month, forgive us for sounding underwhelmed, despairing, and even cynical about these annual jamborees where actions rarely match promises.
U.S.-China Climate Agreement: A Leap Forward in Global Climate Cooperation
The recent U.S.-China summit on November 15 in San Francisco, against a backdrop of low expectations, surprisingly made significant strides with the unveiling of the “Sunnylands Statement on Enhancing Cooperation to Address the Climate Crisis.” This agreement, the result of two years of negotiations between climate envoys John Kerry and Xie Zhenhua, represents a considerable advancement following the 2021 joint declaration at the Glasgow Climate Summit.
Africa Will Not Cope with Climate Change Without a Just, Inclusive Energy Transition
A just transition should be viewed as an opportunity to rectify some of the wrongs where women are not prioritised in the energy mix, yet their experience of the impact of climate change is massive, says Thandile Chinyavanhu, a young South African-based climate and energy campaigner with Greenpeace Africa.
Call for Rural Agriculture Investment, Less Food Wastage to Address Global Hunger
The politics of global food consumption remain contentious, with the upcoming COP28 taking place against the backdrop of worsening food deficits in the Global South.
A Crisis of Humanity
The UN Secretary-General has defined the crisis in Gaza not just as a humanitarian crisis, but rather as a crisis of humanity. According to UN Secretary-General António Guterres: “Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children. Hundreds of girls and boys are reportedly being killed or injured every day.” This continued trend of violence and disregard for international humanitarian law and human life has enveloped our world.
The Cries of Gaza Reach Afghanistan
On the morning of 11 November, Mohammed Abu Salmiya, the Director of Gaza's largest medical center, Al Shifa Hospital, sent out an emotional S.O.S. to the world through a television news interview and through the remaining charge on his mobile phone. His plea for an immediate ceasefire on behalf of a hospital under siege and its 700 critically injured and ill patients, 36 premature babies, 400 staff, and the 2000 vulnerable civilians. These people sheltering within the hospital and its garden were heard as far away as Afghanistan yet totally ignored where it counted most- with the men in Israel's war cabinet and Washington; they were busy executing and aiding an illegal war of choice on an unarmed, defenseless hospital and one of the poorest and densely populated places in the world.
Indigenous Voices and Food Systems Lead the Way at COP28
In a groundbreaking development, indigenous farmer communities are poised to bring the spotlight onto food systems at the upcoming UN Climate Conference (COP28) in Dubai.Next Page »
The scale and scope of emergencies that threaten the safety of communities can be overwhelming. Conflict, human rights, natural disasters and famine have resulted in 82 million displaced people. How do people living in areas of protracted crises live? Who acts to ensure they have homes, education, food and a future? Organizations such as the UN Refugee Agency (UNCHR) and Education Cannot Wait provide direct relief and interventions to fill the gaps in state-provided services.
Humanitarian emergencies have a widespread impact. We are seeing this with COVID-19 and climate change that has touched every corner of the world.
Global summits such as COP26 in Glasgow has been the stage for world leaders to affirm their dedication to dealing with climate change and recognizing it as one of the most significant humanitarian emergencies that need urgent action.
Through hard-hitting reporting and in-depth op-eds, IPS is positioned to discuss the world’s current humanitarian emergencies, the causes and work toward a world where no one is left behind.
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Tracking global progress towards a sustainable world
