climate change

The European Union has long sought to play a leadership role in the international climate change negotiations. For the time being, however, it is non-compliant with a procedural obligation under the Paris Agreement: to notify the UNFCCC secretariat of the individual emission levels allocated to each Member State.

The EU and Germany aim to be climate neutral by 2050 and 2045, respectively. The commitment to climate neutrality means that zero-emission alternatives will replace emissions-intensive processes and products. One energy alternative is climate-friendly hydrogen. However, hydrogen is not an all-purpose miracle that solves everything at once.

With the two-day Biden leaders' summit on climate attended by 40 countries, the United States has returned to the international stage of climate diplomacy. Whether the increased ambition of new climate action pledges via video made by several core countries can be implemented in a binding manner, however, remains an open question - not only, but also including in the United States. An urgently needed signal that the Biden administration is prepared to take on a leadership role in international climate finance in the run-up to COP 26, however, was missing in action.

The governments gathered in Madrid failed to embrace the urgent need for progress towards climate justice and higher ambitions. A broad analysis of the global climate negotiations addressing various angles:  from fossil fuels, ecosystems and biodiversity, climate finance and justice, gender and indigenous people's rights, to emissions trading and Latin America. 

Zofia nierodzińska, a co-creator of the banner “Climate change – the fault of the patriarchy” from a demonstration during the Camp for Climate (Obóz dla Klimatu), explains in an interview how the feminist movement is connected with climate protection.