COP29 is over. A new agreement has been struck. So what exactly happened and what does it all mean?
This week on The Climate Pod, we brought on The Guardian’s Dharna Noor to break down the results and how it could impact global climate action. Dharna was on the ground during the two-week conference to cover it all and joined the show to discuss the complexities and stakes surrounding COP29, how the central theme of climate finance (a new focus for COP) shaped the conference, and the key takeaways of the final agreement. We also explore the tensions between the Global North and South nations present during negotiations, the wild events that unfolded during the talks, and why good reporting and press coverage is so critical during these multilateral discussions. Finally, we get at the heart of the question asked of so many UN climate change conferences - how will this actually impact action on the climate crisis? It’s an excellent conversation with someone we’ve admired on the show for a long time. It was great to have her on to break down this important agreement.
Editor’s note: You can also listen to this conversation and The Climate Pod on iTunes and Spotify and wherever else you get podcasts.
Dharna Noor is a fossil fuels and climate reporter at Guardian US. Prior to that, Dharna was the Boston Globe's climate producer, worked as a staff writer at Earther, where she also co-produced a season of the podcast Drilled on the fossil fuel industry's influence on education.
Speaking of COP29…
Since we started The Climate Pod in 2019, we’ve brought on expert guests to review every. single. COP. event that has taken place. In these conversations over the past five years, we’ve explored so many critical aspects that surround the global climate talks. But a few conversations stand out to me in the wake of this year’s conference. First, our discussion with the late Professor Saleemul Huq (listen to that episode from 2022 here), which we referenced in this week’s episode. Professor Huq attended every COP meeting before his passing last year. Despite the frustrations these annual conferences caused for him and many other champions of climate justice, it was clear he still believed in the importance of showing up for these negotiations to fight for the most vulnerable countries. It was interesting to hear him explain why that was the case.
And when it comes to the subject of climate finance, there are few experts as thoughtful or compelling as Harjeet Singh, a global advocate for climate and social justice who currently serves as the Global Engagement Director at the Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative. We also talked to Singh in 2022 (you can listen to that conversation here) to explore his thoughts on why he believes there is a need for much greater climate funding to help mitigate carbon emissions in the Global South and help the most vulnerable populations adapt to climate impacts. We also got his perspective on why he believes climate justice is only possible through fair, adequate financing and what that financing actually looks like - a very relevant topic to this year’s negotiations.
Thanks for reading this week. We’ll be back next week with an exploration of climate anxiety and how to manage life during the climate crisis with Kate Schapira, author of Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth.
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