by BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — Hundreds of activists formed a human chain outside one of the main plenary halls of the U.N. climate summit in what is traditionally their biggest day of protests during two weeks of talks.
The demonstration in Baku, Azerbaijan, is being replicated in locations around the world in a global “day of action” for climate justice that has become an annual event.
Activists waved flags, snapped their fingers and hummed and mumbled chants in a silent protest, with many covering their mouths with the word “Silenced.”
Protesters held signs calling for more money to be allocated to climate finance, which is cash for the transition to clean energy and adaptation to climate change. It comes at a time when local negotiators are trying to broker a deal to do just that – but progress has been slow and observers say the direction of an agreement remains unclear.
Tired but inspired, activists vow to ‘fight on’
Lidy Nacpil said protesters like her were “not surprised” by how the negotiations were going. But past successes — like a loss and damage fund that gives money to developing countries after extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change — are keeping organizers going, said Nacpil, Asian People’s Movement coordinator for debt and development.
“Our role is to increase the pressure,” she said of the action. “We know that in this round of negotiations we will not achieve the results that the world needs, but it is our hope and our goal to at least bring us many steps closer.”
She added: “I think we have no choice but to keep fighting… It’s the instinctive reaction that everyone, every creature, every living thing will have, which is to fight for life and to survive.”
Tasneem Essop said she was inspired by the event, which was challenging to organize. “Being able to create something where people feel their own power, exercise their own power and be inspired in that creative way, I’m really excited about that,” she said.
Essop says she is “not very” optimistic about the financial results but knows next week will be crucial. “We must not end up doing a bad deal for the peoples of the world, for those already suffering the effects of climate change, for those who must adapt to a growing and escalating crisis,” she said. “We’ll fight until the end.”
There is not much progress on an agreement on climate money
Negotiators at COP29, as the talks are called, are working on a deal that could be worth hundreds of billions of dollars for poorer countries. Many live in the global south and are already suffering the costly effects of weather disasters caused by climate change. Several experts have said at least $1 trillion a year is needed to offset such damage and finance the transition to clean energy, which most countries cannot afford on their own.
Samir Bejanov, deputy chief negotiator at this year’s climate talks, said in a press conference that climate finance negotiations are progressing too slowly.
“I would once again strongly encourage all parties to make as much progress as possible,” he said. “We need everyone to approach the task with urgency and determination.”
Observers were also disappointed by the pace of progress.
“This was the worst first week of a COP in the 15 years I have attended this summit,” said Mohamed Adow of climate think tank Power Shift Africa. “There is no clarity about the goal of climate finance, the quality of the finance or how it will be made available to vulnerable countries.”
“I sense a lot of frustration, particularly among the developing country blocs here,” he said.
Panamanian Environment Minister Juan Carlos Navarro agreed, telling The Associated Press he was “not encouraged” by what he was seeing so far at COP29.
“What I see is a lot of talk and very little action,” he said, pointing out that Panama is among the group of countries least responsible for warming emissions but most vulnerable to the damage caused by it disasters caused by climate change.
“We must meet these challenges with a real sense of urgency and sincerity,” he said. “We are moving slowly as a planet.”
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Associated Press writer Dorany Pineda in Los Angeles contributed.
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