Less Talk More Action In Climate Fight
Loss and Damage has been one of the Pacific’s key issues when it comes to climate change negotiations.
For Kelepi Saukitoga, fighting tooth and nail against the forces of nature has been tiresome but worthwhile, as he continues to face the wrath of climate change at his village in Narikoso, Kadavu.
The village is in the district of Ono, and it was the seventh village to be relocated in Fiji.
During a panel discussion on Loss and Damage, Mr Saukitoga shared the heartfelt reality of having to save families from the frequent occurrence of coastal erosion and seawater inundation, exacerbated by the rise in sea level.
“I have to move my kids and family to safer grounds or else we would be a drowning community trying to fight climate change,” Mr Saukitoga said.
He said in November 2020, with the assistance of donor agencies, they were able to relocate seven households living in the red zone.
Out of the 48 villages earmarked for relocation by the Fijian Government, Narikoso was considered high risk.
The $1.2 million project was funded by the European Union with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) as its implementing agency and co-funded by the Fijian Government.
Mr Saukitoga who is also Narikoso’s Development Committee chairman said that the development committee had plans to relocate every household in Narikoso, but funding had been a challenge.
“With the seven families that have been relocated, we are hopeful that within due time, we will be able to get donor agencies to assist in relocating the other families,” Mr Saukitoga said.
“That does not mean that we have been idle. We continue to secure these homes with whatever resources we have available in the village and are doing the best we can to strengthen our seawalls.”
IMPACTS
He added that the impacts of climate change have slowly changed the looks of the village and it has been costly.
“Seawater comes right into the village grounds on a daily basis, and this destroys the foundation and walls of homes, but we will keep fighting,” he said.
The two day workshop was organised by the University of Fiji in collaboration with the Ministry of iTaukei Affairs, Pacific Islands Development Forum, Linkoping University from Sweden and the ANU Institute, Energy and Disaster Solutions.
The goal of the workshop was to strengthen collaborations and knowledge sharing on ‘Loss and Damage and Climate Negotiations’.
LOSS AND DAMAGE IS A REALITY
The 2022 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report on Climate Change Mitigation is clear that
a 1.5-degree world is possible if global leaders commit to taking strong, urgent action.
Ministry of iTaukei Affairs Permanent Secretary, Pita Tagicakakirewa said loss and damage remains a bridge to hope in our climate change advocacy and fight.
“There are outstanding questions on how loss and damage should be interpreted and addressed at different levels taking into consideration the diverse perspectives, services from different parties,” he said.
“We are examples of loss and damage neglect, and delays will be fateful for us. We must convince the global community particularly the major countries and emitters that they have a case to answer, that our loss and damage is a reality for us,”
He reiterated that to look the other way will be catastrophic for Fiji and the Pacific.
“It is important that we focus on how our experience can be used to strengthen our work and in the various areas and communities that we work with,” he said.
“There is hope that every step we take to raise the issue brings us closer to the point that we will eventually get over that bridge and secure the victory we need, and we must continue to do so aggressively,” Mr Tagicakakirewa said.
UNFCCC PROCESS
The history of Loss and Damage in the context of climate negotiations is retraced back to 1991 when the Alliance of Small Island States called for a mechanism that would compensate countries affected by sea level rise.
Through the years, more and more vulnerable countries realised that they too are affected by climate change that is beyond their coping capacities.
Sweden’s Linkoping University, Professor in Environmental Change, Professor Bjorn-Ola Linner in his presentation said the increasing attention in the international discussions both in academia, politics and media are the geopolitical aspects of the climate negotiations.
“In the wake of the pandemic, we clearly could see how the geopolitical shifts in the world started to also affect the climate negotiations both for better and for worse.
“We could see a larger self interest from countries keeping the vaccine to themselves and so on, which created a distrust, but we could also see an emerging focus on what we can rebuild and in a way what we can do to achieve the Paris agreement,” the Professor said.
The idea of addressing loss and damage gained wider support.
And with the inclusion of Article 8 of the Paris Agreement, loss and damage has now become firmly installed as a thematic pillar under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
During the twenty-sixth Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26) held in Glasgow last year, the Glasgow Dialogue on Loss and Damage was established to explore ways to fund Loss and Damage in the future.
Though it is still a working progress, communities, stakeholders, government and its partners are not giving up on the fight to have their voices heard at the international level.