Achim Steiner, head of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) said the pandemic would transform societies. It would be impossible simply to reactivate the pre-Covid-19 global economy in the way that billion-dollar bailouts helped revive growth after the 2008 financial crisis.

“It’s a kind of a fork in the road for every country,” he told Climate Home News in a video interview from New York, adding that developing nations were especially vulnerable. “You have an opportunity to either invest in returning to yesterday’s economy or to invest into tomorrow’s economy.”

The coronavirus has killed more than 190,000 people worldwide.

Steiner said that the plunge in benchmark US oil prices to lows of around minus $40 a barrel on Monday – meaning producers and traders paying to get rid of it – highlighted a need to break dependence on fossil fuels and move to greener energies such as solar and wind power.

Crude began the year trading above $60.

“The fact that the lifeblood of our economy for much of the last 100 years has been dependent on a substance (whose price) oscillates literally in a few months by 200%, sometimes 300% … is in itself an illustration of how irrational our energy has become,” he said.

New Zealand sticks to 2030 climate target while waiting for 1.5C advice

He said that nuclear power had also failed to live up to promises of being a cheap and safe source of energy. Nuclear power “is a 20th century technology that is on the way out. Fossil fuels are rapidly moving in that direction.”

In government planning “there are thousands of possibilities in our daily economic transactions to insert the DNA of a low-carbon transition and recovery strategy. These are the possibilities we now need to test,” he said.

He noted that the Austrian government, for instance, said this month that state aid for Austrian Airlines should support climate policy targets. Similar opportunities to shape a greener future existed in all stimulus packages.

At the same time, he said that many countries, especially developing nations dependent on oil exports, needed to safeguard jobs and would need time to reform.

“You can’t talk a terrible crisis into a rosy opportunity,” he said. “We need to now have governments and markets design their strategy of exiting from fossil fuels over a period of probably 50 years, but with increasing and accelerating pace.”

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Almost 200 governments committed in the 2015 Paris climate agreement to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in the second half of this century. That is seen as essential to limit rising temperatures that scientists link to wildfires, heatwaves, rising seas and more powerful storms.

This week, the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) estimated a deep decarbonisation of the world economy by 2050 requires total energy investment up to $130 trillion.

It would boost cumulative global GDP gains above business-as-usual by $98 trillion between now and 2050 and have benefits such as quadrupling renewable energy jobs to 42 million, Irena said.

Steiner said a green transition would also help reduce climate change and air pollution that kills millions of people a year. There were also risks that fossil fuel reserves would become stranded assets, that were unusable and worthless for investors.

IPCC: UN climate science report to consider lessons from coronavirus

Developing nations were most at risk from coronavirus and restrictions on trade and travel, since they cannot mobilise billions of dollars to shield their citizens.

In the Indian Ocean state of the Maldives, for instance, “no tourism means no economy,” he said.

Steiner was head of the UN Environment Programme at the time of the financial crisis and urged the adoption of a Global Green New Deal in 2009 to shift economies away from fossil fuels, one of the first uses of an idea that has since caught on far more widely.

In 2009, the reaction “was still a very partial and relatively limited green stimulus” even though nations including China, the United States, the European Union and South Korea and others invested billions of dollars into green measures.

And Covid-19 “isn’t a crisis we can solve with bailouts,” he said. “This time we are not going to see a return to a pre-Covid normal. It’s not just about getting back the economy we had before.”

He governments should put more resources into planning for the future.

“This is not a black swan, this is not Rumsfeld’s unknown unknown,” he said of the pandemic, referring to former US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld who spoke of “unknown unknowns” when discussing uncertainties about Iraq’s weapons arsenal.

“We have just been catapulted into that domain where oil is something that we actually cannot use,” Steiner said.

The post UN development chief calls for green shift away from ‘irrational’ oil dependence appeared first on Climate Home News.

Pic: Marko Capek

By Sophie Yeo

After spending a night in the freezing mountains of Tajikistan, a cold shower is not just bracing – it is brutal.

But for many Tajik people, hot water is not an option. In winter, outside of the big cities, many rural households can access electricity for just one to three hours a day.

With temperatures dropping below zero, this can make life unpleasant for those who live and work in mountainous regions.

That is why the UN has stepped in with a new project to enable women to build their own solar hot water systems.

“There is data to show than an average temperature in a class room is 10-11C. It is just normal that you’re freezing in school,” Robert Pasicko, who works on low carbon projects at the UN Development Programme (UNDP) in Croatia, told RTCC.

“The main idea was to heat the water, which can be used as pre-heated water for cooking, tea, and washing. Warm water is quite a commodity. If you don’t have basic needs your life can get really bad.”

The team in Croatia was invited to work in Tajikistan, following their success at installing solar systems in villages cut off from the electric grid during the Bosnian War of the 1990s.

Leaving for Russia

Tajikistan has its own problems.

The lack of electricity means that people have to rely on firewood for heat, which is driving deforestation in the country. 70% of Tajikistan’s mountain woodlands have disappeared since the fall of the Soviet Union and the end of its fuel subsidies.

There is also an absence of men, with around one million of them leaving every year to find work mainly in Russia.

But the country also has over 300 days of sun every year, making it particularly suited to clean, off grid solar energy projects.

And the annual departure of the men means that the women have learnt to become more resilient.

“They call them handy women. They take care of the household, providing energy – it’s their task. You cannot rely on men,” said Pasicko.

Pic: Marko Capek

The Croatian team therefore decided to teach the Tajikistan women to make solar water heaters themselves.

This week, in Jilikul village next to the Afghan border, 15 women took part in a workshop where they were taught to assemble the technology.

Each system is capable of heating 40 litres of water in just a few hours – a dramatic improvement on the previous method of leaving bottles of water to heat in the sun.

Now the plan is to extend and improve the project by setting up informal cooperatives of women, so that they can buy the materials as cheaply as possible and holding more workshops across the border in Kyrgyzstan.

The idea is that the women will then be able to train others who are in a similar predicament themselves.

The UNDP team has even produced a manual to help the idea spread.

And, at the request of the women, plans are now afoot to bring more skills to the region, including how to build clean cook stoves, reducing the problem of indoor air pollution.

“They were smiling all the time and happy they were able to learn something,” said Pasicko. “They said please come back with some new things.”

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Source: Flickr / Moyan Brenn

By Ed King in Windhoek

Land degradation around the world is likely to accelerate unless governments place a value on soil, water, trees and ecosystems.

That’s the finding of a new report released today in Windhoek, Namibia on the sidelines of a UN summit focused on desertification.

“Many decision makers in both developing and developed countries continue to discount the impact of land degradation on land system productivity,” it warns.

The Economics of Land Degradation Initiative (ELD), who produced the study, say crop yields worth US$ 1.4 trillion could be grown if sustainable land management practices are introduced around the world.

This means adopting farming and industrial practices that allow soils, water, animals and plants to flourish in the long term, and taking steps to restore damaged ecosystems.

The authors hope their work can have a similar effect in this sector as the 2006 Stern Report had on international climate change policy.

And they say their assessment provides policymakers with a ‘toolbox’ for working out how valuable certain areas of land are, along with their wider contribution to ecosystems.

Contributing author Stacey Noel from the Stockholm Environment Institute told RTCC the report is long overdue, and will be especially useful to governments in developing countries.

“I actually think that for politicians looking at the numbers, this will convince them, particularly African governments who are trying to choose the best development path, and the numbers make sense to them,” she said

“Everyone is concerned about food security, water and energy, but the fact is you can’t maximise all three.”

Currently around 168 countries are estimated to suffer from land degradation, costing the global economy an estimated US$ 40 billion a year.

Global soil erosion exceeds new soil formation by as much as 23 billion tonnes per year, or 1% of soil stock, a process described by some scientists as the ‘skinning’ of the planet.

Ecosystem services

Many environmental campaigners are fiercely opposed to placing a value on nature, arguing this will make complex and vital ecosystems that generate clean water and filter the air just another commodity that can be traded.

Noel disagrees, arguing that unless a value is placed on nature, it will not be recognised as a serious issue by politicians.

“Some things are invaluable, but showing the ways they can be valued I think is really important. I think it’s a bit cynical you can’t put a price on it.”

Richard Thomas, lead author on the report and Director of the United Nations University’s Drylands department says without an economic analysis, it will be hard to develop effective policies.

“If you can’t get the message through to the ministers of planning or finance you don’t get a look in,” he said.

“That’s why we are trying to speak the same language as those ministries that really make a difference in terms of allocating their national budget. You’ve got to get it up to that level.”

Land grabs

Establishing a clear method of valuing land is seen as critical in Africa, where foreign companies have been accused of vast ‘land grabs’ at knockdown prices.

In 2011 UNEP warned a web of ‘leases, concessions, outright land sales’ covering thousands of hectares had emerged in Africa, specifically in Ethiopia, Mali, Sudan, Madagascar, and Mozambique.

The Land Deal Politics Initiative estimates 80 million hectares around the world could now be under the control of foreign companies, many who have no long term interests in safeguarding the local environment.

Thomas hopes their findings will encourage developing countries to think carefully about selling off land.

“This will hopefully level the playing field a bit and give them a better aggregate value of the land, so they’ll be in a stronger negotiating position,” he said.

Thomas says some speculators have secured land ownership with an estimated worth of $6000 a hectare at just $5.

The hope is that by forcing companies and business to pay a realistic price for lands, they will take better care of them.

“We’re not trying to commoditise land, we’re trying to raise awareness of the value of land,” he adds, “and make people aware of what they’ve got and what they are losing.”

The post World faces $40 billion annual bill due to damaged ecosystems appeared first on Climate Home News.

By Richard Munang

Headlines of late have focused on the worst drought in decades in Africa and elsewhere.

In response, the international prices of maize and soybeans have risen past 2007-08 peaks, when they fueled food riots in more than 30 countries. Over the next few decades Africa’s population [1] is expected to expand to more than that of China or India, constituting about 23% of the global population by 2050.

This will place a huge demand on governments and states to provide sufficient survival opportunities. It is therefore critical to build resilient food systems that can enhance food security and address other numerous challenges like climate change, resource scarcity and severe ecological degradation.

However, the questions as to the type of measures/approaches and strategies required still generate divergent views on the international policy arena. Closer attention to a broader spectrum of options is urgently needed. Approaches that go beyond words into actions with potential to informing and guiding policy practices are imperative and urgently needed.

One of these approaches is Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) [2] that has provided flexible, cost effective and broadly applicable alternatives for building robust food systems and reducing the impacts of climate change.

Agriculture and fishing are the most important sectors in Mozambique’s economy

Ecosystem degradation undermines food production and the availability of clean water among other ecosystem services, thereby threatening human health, livelihoods and ultimately societal stability. Degradation increases the vulnerability of populations to natural disasters like the Horn of Africa droughts.

To meet the food needs of today and tomorrow, ecosystem services, such as water provision, pollination and maintenance of soil fertility must be enhanced [3]. Farmers rely on soil micro-organisms to maintain soil fertility and structure for crop production, and on wild species in natural ecological communities for crop pollination and pest and predator control. At present, the value of these services is not built into the cost of food production.

The result is that farmers are not rewarded for stewarding their land for future generations, and food production and distribution are often environmentally damaging. The huge international research project on The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) has drawn attention to the economic benefits of ecosystem services and calculating the costs of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation.

TEEB’s synthesis report (2010) argued that if the goods and services provided by the natural world are not valued and factored into the global economic system, the environment will become less resilient to shocks, risking human lives, livelihoods and the global economy.

The local case for action

The example below show lessons learned from local actions conducted by local actors targeting various aspects of adapting food to climate change. These can serve to open a window of opportunity in addressing the current food crisis plaguing the continent.

In the city of Xai Xai, Mozambique many households were experiencing an average of 4 to 5 months of food shortage every year, affecting mainly fishermen. Couple with the current drought crises and changing climate, this coastal community needed to draw from other sources of food productivity such as the seascape in addressing the need for additional sources of food supply.

Against this backdrop, Ecosystem-based adaptation approaches were used to address this food insecurity and build resilience of the local communities. UNEP with technical backstopping and financial support helped the Centre for Sustainable Development of Coastal Zones (CDS ZS) and introduced an EbA approach to solve this problem by implementing EbA activities to increase their resilience and to ensure the recovery and the sustainable future use of the mangrove ecosystem.

The EBA approaches used were fish farming, crab farming and mangrove reforestation. These community-based and community-led interventions helped enhanced the adaptive capacity resulting in the establishment of fish ponds, crab growth cages; directly benefiting 98 households (490 people) including 10 households in crab farming, 20 households in fish farming and 68 households in mangrove reforestation including 4 that is permanently involved in the mangrove nurseries.

Economy & ecosystems

The project provided seasonal labor for the household members involved in the activities.  Families that once were only depending on fishing activity at the sea are now involved in fish and crab farming and they are getting enough for consumption and also selling the fish and crabs they harvest. The income from the sale of these products is used to purchase food and other goods for the households, ensuring food security and increasing resilience of local communities to climate change.

Mangrove is a nursery area for many marine species, most of which are important for food like fish, crabs and shrimps. Reforestation of mangrove has ensured the normal functioning of this ecosystem, which has in turn increased fishery productivity and yield, ensuring enhanced food security. The implementation of the fish and crab farming has increased change resilience to local community.

Fishermen, who previously relied solely on fishing in the sea for their livelihood, have crab farming as an opportunity to overcome the crisis of catches in the fishery activity. The crab farming is also having an effect in reducing the deforestation of mangroves at the local level. The outcomes of this project have helped the college of Marine Science to develop a fish and shrimp farming in the same area.

A way forward

The benefits of understanding what has previously worked can provide a guiding vision as we proactively address the current crisis. Sustainable food security strategies must thus, among others, develop new opportunities, increase productivity in agriculture, and assist in the development of domestic markets that can withstand international economic volatility.

Investment in EbA is one of the most important keys to job creation opportunities that simultaneously contribute to poverty eradication and to sustainable long-term food security.

Such investments will improve the competitiveness of domestic production, increase farmers’ profits and make food more affordable for the poor.

Dr Richard Munang holds a PhD in Environmental Change & Policy from the University of Nottingham, United Kingdom. He is currently the UN Environment Programme Policy & Programme Coordinator for the Climate Change Adaptation & Development  programme for Africa. He specializes in societal and ecosystem-based adaptation and has conducted several assessments to understand how adaptation strategies and policy can be formulated to reduce climate change impacts. As of recent his focus has been on the role of adaptation in developing country-specific low-carbon economy, the green Economy and sustainable development objectives and translating Adaptation into practical business strategy.

[1] UN, World Population Prospects: The 2008 Revision. 2009, United Nations Population Division: New York.

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The economic progress of the world’s developing countries could stall or even reverse by 2050 if swift and drastic measures are not taken to combat the effects of climate change.

A new report from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), ‘Sustainability and Equity – A better future for all’, argues that environmental damage and social inequality are restricting potential in the global south.

Sub-Saharan Africa is identified as being at particular risk, with highlands that are sensitive to changes in climate, combined with a low capacity to adapt.

Pacific Islanders who rely on fishing to supplement their incomes and diet also face an uncertain future, with ‘major declines in fish stocks’ forecast by the study.

Deforestation is also identified as a major concern, although the report notes that India, Bhutan, China and Vietnam have all reversed this trend in recent years.

The former New Zealand Prime Minister and UNDP administrator Helen Clark believes a new approach to financing low carbon technology in developing countries is one potential solution.

Writing in the report she says: “Today’s spending on low-carbon energy sources is only 1.6 per cent of even the lowest estimate of need”

“Spending on climate change adaptation and mitigation is around 11 per cent of estimated need. Hope rests on new climate finance.”

Discussions on a new framework to fund climate related projects are expected to continue at COP17 in Durban, with the Technology Mechanism and Green Climate Fund high on the agenda.

You can read the UNDP report in full here.

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