SUSTAINABILITY

Climate Change. The 24th Session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP24) ended December 15 in Katowice, Poland, with the approval of a “rule book” for the effective implementation of the Paris Agreement that will enter into force in 2020. This roadmap defines guidelines on how and when compliance with emission reduction measures should be reported within the framework of nationally determined contributions (NDCs) committed in the agreement, the funding provided and received. Signatory countries will be required to report their emissions every two years beginning in 2024. The COP25 will take place in January 2020 in Chile with the collaboration of Costa Rica.

Adaptation to climate change creates challenges but also opportunities. Risks recently categorized as transition, physical and liability risks have yet to be identified, assessed and managed in their magnitude and complexity. On the other hand, the investments required to achieve low greenhouse gas and climate resilient economies can be seen as an opportunity for economic and financial development.

The private sector, represented at the Summit by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), issued a document capturing the business perspective on the Paris Accord rulebook. It argues that business can be a key partner for adaptation planning and climate resilience, knowledge sharing, modelling, research, technology development and transfer, finance, insurance, capacity building and public-private partnerships. To this end, five private banks made public commitments to work to align their loan portfolios with the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

At the regional level, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and Costa Rica signed a technical cooperation agreement to work on issues related to long-term strategies, implementation of NDCs and regional inventories. They did so within the framework of Euroclima+, a programme financed by the European Union that offers specialised services for Latin American countries in order to support the implementation of the commitments of the Paris Agreement and to deliver projects in different areas. The governments of Argentina and Chile also announced that they are working on laws on adaptation and mitigation to climate change that will be presented in the course of 2019.

Next Steps

The Paris Agreement will enter into force in 2020. That same year the next Climate Summit (COP25) will take place in Chile, after Brazil’s resignation to host it. It will have the collaboration of Costa Rica. Signatory countries will report their emissions every two years starting in 2024. At the regional level, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and Costa Rica will begin to implement a technical cooperation agreement in 2019, with the support of the Euroclima+ program. It is expected that in the course of 2019, the governments of Argentina and Chile will present bills on mitigation and adaptation to climate change.