Brazil takes the climate lead in Baku
Offers New Ecological Transformation Ideas
eyesonsuriname
Amsterdam/Baku, November 13, 2024–At the COP 29 Climate Conference this week in Baku, Azerbaijan, Brazil has taken a leading position at the event from the opening by offering its Pathways to Ecological Transformation space. This is a new initiative of the country to discuss climate change, the media in Brazil reported to eyesonsuriname.
“We have the largest rainforest in the world, we have the cleanest electricity in the world – 85% is hydropower, solar, electricity, biomass – we have biodiesel, the best in the world – it used to be 10% [percentage blended with gasoline], President Lula increased it to 12%, 14% and next year it will go to 15%, as well as the law on the fuel of the future”, said Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, who led his country’s delegation.
He also emphasized the regulation of the carbon market in the National Congress, the reduction of deforestation to lead the country to zero, and the delivery of the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), which he found extremely brutal. “We are moving from 2.2 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent to a target of 850 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent by 2035,” he continued.
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Minister for the Environment and Climate Change
Marina Silva pointed out that the actions discussed at the meeting in Baku will lead Brazil to host the implementation COP (COP30). “What is the indicator of the success of this COP29, beyond the many issues being discussed here? It is certainly the financing mechanisms, without which what we announce will be just words”, she said while this year’s attendees plan to focus on collecting the resources for the actions deemed necessary.
According to Silva, climate finance is what will enable adaptation and mitigation actions and the transformation of development models. This path has already been mapped out with the public policies to tackle fires, the implementation of the climate plan, the Pact for Ecological Transformation and the results achieved by the current government.
“We do not want to be satisfied with the data that we have achieved, we want Brazil to be the address of prosperity, but, as President Lula says, with a fight against inequality, prosperity, protection of biodiversity and indigenous peoples, prosperity so that our country can be democratic and sustainable, in dialogue with all sectors”, she insisted.
Regarding Brazil’s ambition to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the minister emphasized Brazil’s global importance on these issues. “Let’s chart the path to transition, the end of fossil fuel use, the end of deforestation and so that no one is left behind,” she underlined.
During the opening ceremony of the
COP29, Azerbaijani Minister of Ecology Mukhtar Babayev took over the presidency from Sultan Al Jaber, who chaired the previous conference in the United Arab Emirates in 2023: “By mobilizing climate finance, we enable high ambitions. And when we show signs of greater ambition together, we create the confidence to unlock greater financial commitments,” Babayev said.
“Climate change is already here, from flooded homes in Spain to bushfires in Australia, from emerging oceans in the Pacific to arid plains in East Africa. Whether we see them or not, people suffer in the shadows. They die in the dark. And they need more than compassion, more than prayers and bureaucracy. They are begging for leadership and action,” he warned.
“They are waiting for us to show leadership and they can’t afford the cost of delay. So let’s increase that ambition and enable action. Let’s move forward in solidarity for a green world. And let’s get to work,” he continued.
The two-week event will focus on fundraising from richer countries to less developed countries to help them fight climate change and reduce gas emissions.
So far, the $100 billion annual pledge (pledged at COP15 in Copenhagen) has been considered insufficient. However, there is no consensus on the exact amount or on what formulas should be used to increase funding.