As the third pillar of action under the Paris Agreement, efforts to address Loss and  Damage have been primarily framed as a politically divisive yet technically focused domain in the climate regime. In reality, it is the very essence of climate justice based on the economic and non-economic damages disproportionately suffered by communities, particularly in poor and vulnerable countries and …

Loss and damage from human induced climate change has been around as early as 1991, when the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) called for a mechanism that would help to compensate countries affected by the rise in sea levels. Despite its long lingering history, why does the issue of L&D stand out in today’s climate scenario? Heavy rains swept …

For too long the issue of addressing Loss and Damage has remained in the margins of climate negotiations. The Warsaw International Mechanism and the Santiago Network have begun to assist with knowledge exchange and capacity building, yet distinct finance for addressing Loss and Damage has remained largely off the table while progress was made at COP26 with the establishment of …

The idea of establishing an implementation arm of Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM), was put forward by the Least Developing Countries (LDCs) at COP25, held in Madrid in 2019. It was quickly accepted by other groups like AOSIS, AGN and AILAC. Hence, G-77 and China moved with the common position to negotiate with the developed country Parties. However, due to the consensus among …

I have just spent two weeks in Bonn, Germany attending the Subsidiary Bodies meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in preparation for the 27th Conference of Parties (CoP 27) to be held in Sharm Al Shaikh, Egypt in November this year. I have been participating in these meetings since 1992 and it is depressing to …

The Santiago Network on Loss and Damage (SNLD) was established at COP25/CMA2, “as part of the Warsaw International Mechanism,…for averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change, to catalyse the technical assistance of relevant organizations, bodies, networks and experts, for the implementation of relevant approaches at the local, national and regional level, in …

With a 1 degree increase in temperature above pre-industrial levels, climate change is already causing mayhem in different parts of the world. The term Loss and Damage (capitalised letters) refers to the political debate under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) following the establishment of the Warsaw Mechanism for Loss and Damage in 2013, which is to …

Climate Tribune | April 2022 Articles in the series “LOSS AND DAMAGE, WHAT’S NEXT FROM SCOTLAND? by Nicola Sturgeon “LOSSES AND DAMAGES IN A CLIMATE CHANGED WORLD” by Saleemul Huq, Ian Burton, and Simon Anderson “CLIMATE VULNERABLE NATIONS STAND UP TO MOBILIZE FUNDING FACILITIES FOR LOSS AND DAMAGE” by Md Abul Kalam Azad “ADDRESSING LOSS AND DAMAGE IS AN EQUITY …

At the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow last November, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, speaking on behalf of 55 vulnerable developing countries under the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF), put forward a demand to set up a facility to finance loss and damage from human-induced climate change. This demand was included in the draft of the Glasgow …

The Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) of Working Group II (WGII) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was published on February 28, 2022. AR6 by Working Group I, published in August 2021, clearly stated that increasing anthropogenic activities have increased the global mean temperature by over 1°C, resulting in increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. The WGII …