UN climate conferences include a wide range of events and exhibits—among them this “pollution pod” at the 2019 COP25, held in Madrid, Spain. (Photo courtesy of United Nations)
For Latin America, the United Nations Climate Change Conference that got underway this month in Glasgow, Scotland, presents an opportunity to secure financing for climate change mitigation and adaptation projects, but also amounts to a moment of truth. While some parts of the region are among the most vulnerable in the world to the negative effects of climate change, others depend disproportionately on carbon-intensive economic activities and lag in planning aggressive emissions limits. The juxtaposition is expected to loom large at this year’s Oct. 31- Nov. 12 climate conference, known as COP26. “There are countries like Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Ecuador, which produce oil and gas, and Colombia, which produces coal,” says Santiago Lorenzo, the lead climate change official at the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (Eclac). “They’re pushing for the concept of a just transition—in other words, for establishing mechanisms so there is... [Log in to read more]
