Pushing for global action on climate change to beat poverty

Updated 8 October 2008

Related pages: Climate change - did you know? | How DFID is tackling climate change | How we fight poverty: Climate | Millennium Development Goal 7: Environment, Water & Sanitation

 

 

Drought in Ethiopia - a woman collects water from a muddy pondImage courtesy of Dieter Telemans/Panos Pictures


Climate change is the greatest challenge facing the world today. It is a global issue that demands a global response. And the window of opportunity to agree on that response is beginning to close.

The scientific evidence shows that climate change is happening and that human activities are the cause. Climate change is already affecting people’s lives, but the impact will be even greater if we don’t act immediately. And the impact will be felt soonest, and most severely, by the world's poorest people. As well as living in parts of the world that are more at risk of disasters such as drought and flooding, poor people are less able to withstand the damage to property, infrastructure and livelihoods that climate change will bring.

In December 2007, the External linkBali Climate Change Conference brought together the countries signed up to the UN's Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). At the Conference, after two weeks of talks, both developed and developing countries agreed to negotiate a new treaty on climate change by the end of 2009. This was described by Prime Minister Gordon Brown as "a vital step forward for the whole world". The Conference also saw DFID announce more money towards the crucial areas of helping developing countries adapt to climate change, and tackling deforestation.

Climate change: A development issue

A farmer in Ethiopia - drought has caused his crops to fail, and his family are short of foodImage courtesy of Sven Torfin/Panos Pictures


The External linkfourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) showed that climate change is happening, and there can be no doubt that the world's poorest people are under the greatest threat. As well as being an environmental issue - and an issue that impacts on foreign policy, national security and economic growth - climate change is a major development issue.

DFID recognises that, unless we tackle climate change, we will not achieve the Millennium Development Goals, nor the aspirations of the Make Poverty History campaign. That is why we are spending more money than ever to make the world's poorest people less vulnerable to climate change, for example by investing in flood-resistant housing in Bangladesh. We have pledged £75 million to help poor countries directly adapt for the future, and the £800 million Environmental Transformation Fund, announced in early 2007, will help tackle the causes and consequences of climate change throughout the developing world.

A strong domestic policy on climate change is essential if the UK is to show leadership internationally. Through the External linkClimate Change Bill, the Energy White Paper and other measures, the UK is demonstrating that it can move to a low-carbon economy while continuing to grow economically. Since 1997, the UK economy has grown by around a quarter, while greenhouse gases have gone down by 7%. And the UK Government has committed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by at least 60% by 2050, and is consulting on the possibility of raising this to 80%.

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Key facts about climate change

 
  • The world has warmed by nearly 1° C over the last century. The rate of warming over the last 50 years is nearly twice that of the last 100 years.
  • If the world's temperature were to increase by a further 1° C, at least 10% of land species would face extinction.
  • By 2050, 200 million people could be rendered homeless by rising sea levels, floods and drought.
  • 73% of disasters between 1900 and 2004 were climate related, and 94% of disasters and 97% of disaster-related deaths occur in developing countries.
  • By 2020 between 75 and 250 million people in Africa will be facing increased water shortages.
  • The costs of ignoring climate change have been estimated at more than that of the two world wars and the Great Depression (5 to 20% of GDP) (Stern Report).

 

Working internationally to tackle the threat

A child carries drinking water during floods in Bangladesh - global warming increases the risk of floodingImage courtesy of G.M.B. Akash/Panos Pictures

 

The UK is keen that world governments reach a comprehensive agreement on climate change by December 2009, so that the agreement can be translated into law by the time the Kyoto Protocol comes to an end in 2012.

This global deal, which should listen to all countries' voices and the particular needs of developing countries, must set out ambitious targets for the reduction of greenhouse gases, promote economic incentives for cutting carbon emissions, and open up money for low-carbon energy in the world's poorest countries. Investing in technology, and helping countries adapt to the effects of climate change, are also crucial.

The UK is working on all fronts to increase the momentum for international action. This involves working through the EU and the G8, and with individual countries, to support the formal UN process. Only through the UN can a binding global deal be achieved.

If the world acts quickly - with richer countries taking responsibility and leading the way - there is good reason for believing that we can tackle climate change. The practical solutions already exist to reduce global carbon emissions. The swifter we are in reaching an agreement, the greater our chance of avoiding environmental catastrophe and helping to beat world poverty, and the cheaper it will be to do so.

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The scale and urgency of the problem

Click here to watch the UNDP video on climate changeImage courtesy of UNDP

 

On 27 November 2007, the annual External linkHuman Development report of the United Nations was published. (Click on the picture, left, to watch the UN's videos about climate change). It warned that the world's poor face the most immediate and severe costs of climate change, with the threat of "unprecedented reversals" in poverty reduction, health and education. According to the report, "climate shocks" such as droughts, floods and storms - which are predicted to become more frequent as the planet warms - are already among the strongest factors driving poverty. In the future, progress to alleviate poverty could be reversed by the problems caused by such shocks

Secretary of State for International Development, Douglas Alexander, welcomed the report, saying:

"This report highlights the scale and urgency of the problem. The effects of climate change will hit the world’s poorest hardest. If we don’t tackle climate change now, we will struggle to help the world’s poor build a better life for themselves and their children. Climate change is an issue of justice. It is the world’s poorest who will suffer the most, yet they’re least responsible for it."

The report called for developed countries to lead the way in implementing stringent carbon dioxide cuts, as well as big increases in investment from developed nations to help poorer countries adapt to climate change. The report also pointed out the need for a range of policies, including emissions trading schemes, stronger regulation and the development of low carbon energy sources.

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Climate change and deforestation

A section of Indonesian rainforest felled in a large-scale logging ventureImage courtesy of Rob Huibers/Panos Pictures

 

On 29 December 2007, DFID launched a series of films and publications outlining the links between the devastation of forests and climate change. Where forests used to cover almost half of all the land on our planet, they now cover just 29% and every year more is lost. Illegal logging accounts for a significant portion of what is lost, and, as well as contributing to climate change, this impoverishes millions of the world's poorest people.

Speaking at the launch, DFID Minister Gareth Thomas spoke of the need to take action on deforestation if climate change is to be tackled:

"Deforestation is responsible for a fifth of all carbon dioxide emissions. We cannot tackle climate change without addressing emissions from deforestation...Policies on deforestation should be shaped and led by the nations where forests are, which is why it’s so important that action on deforestation is part of the next climate deal struck through the UN process. Developing countries, especially those which have large areas of natural forest, must be part of any climate change deal for it to succeed."

Read the publications and watch the films here:

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Links

Below, we focus on DFID's work within three developing countries to tackle climate change:

Also, learn how "global carbon credits" are transforming an Indian farmer's life in the External linklatest edition of Developments magazine.

The 2007 meeting of the G8 nations made unprecedented progress on climate change. Calling for Bali to move the world towards a 2009 agreement, the G8 also demanded, for the first time, a goal for the reduction of global emissions, taking account of the European goal to halve these by 2050. Find out what the UK has done on climate change since the G8 Presidency in 2005.

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