Activists at COP28 summit in Dubai ramp up pressure on cutting fossil fuels

Dubai: Activists had a series of events and actions lined up Tuesday at the United Nations climate summit seeking to amp up pressure on conference participants to agree to phase out coal, oil and gas, responsible for most of the world’s emissions, and move to clean energy in a fair way.

The question of how to handle fossil fuels is central to the talks, which come after a year of record heat and devastating weather extremes around the world. And even as the use of clean energy is growing, most energy companies have plans to continue aggressive pursuit of fossil fuel production well into the future.

Protests which are limited to “action zones” around the U.N. site centered on phasing out fossil fuels and calling for finance to ramp up the move to clean energy.

Meanwhile, negotiations are well underway on the so-called global stocktake a framework for new national plans so countries can adhere to capping warming to levels set in the Paris Agreement in 2015. A draft released Tuesday will be pored over by negotiators looking at how to stick to the goal.

Over 100 countries have pledged to triple their renewable capacity and double energy efficiency by the end of the decade.

COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber, who also leads the host United Arab Emirates’ national oil company, was on the defensive on Monday over contradictory remarks about phasing out fossil fuels.

Al-Jaber said his remarks had been mischaracterised and told journalists he is “laser-focused” on helping limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times.

Much of Monday’s meetings at the conference focused on climate finance.

Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, who has drawn attention as an advocate for changing the way global finance treats developing nations, said global taxes on the financial services, oil and gas, and shipping industries could drum up hundreds of billions of dollars for poorer countries to adapt and cope with global warming.

“This has probably been the most progress we’ve seen in the last 12 months on finance,” Mottley told reporters about pledges to fund the transition to clean energy, adapt to climate change and respond to extreme weather events.

“But we’re not where we need to be yet,” she said.

World Bank President Ajay Banga laid out five target areas in climate finance.