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COP27: Global south and small island states are leading on ocean climate action

The following is an excerpt from an article published by China Dialogue Ocean:

As UN climate talks in Egypt begin, global south and small island states are among those including ocean solutions in their national commitments – but progress is far from enough

Small island states and countries in the global south are leading the way in putting ocean solutions into national climate plans submitted to the United Nations, ocean advocates say. 

Source: Ocean Conservancy • Graphic by China Dialogue Ocean

*Climate-ready fisheries refer to measures of building a fishery industry that is sustainable and adaptive to the impacts of climate change. Ocean-climate justice means ensuring ocean policies champion the equity of people of all ages, gender, social origin, race, etc. Blue economy is an approach that uses ocean resources sustainably for economic growth.

After years of calling for greater ocean protection to fight climate change, campaigners are seeing some “encouraging” signs, as a study showed that an increasing majority of coastal countries are presenting at least one ocean-based solution in their latest climate plans. 

But they say the progress is far from enough.

Ahead of the UN COP27 climate summit in Egypt this month, the ocean community aims to ensure this trend of “blueing” climate plans continues. More importantly, they want to guarantee countries are delivering on ocean actions, and not just talking. 

‘Blueing’ climate commitments

Some positive progress has been seen in coastal countries’ climate plans, says Anna-Marie Laura, director of international government relations at Ocean Conservancy, a Washington DC-based non-profit.

“There are quite a few mentions of ocean and coasts, and the connection between the health of the ocean and climate change,” she says. 

Under the 2015 Paris Agreement, countries pledged to submit and update their national climate plans, known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs), to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) every five years.

The UN received NDCs from 192 countries in the first round. After the pandemic delayed the second round of submissions, 147 countries have submitted new or updated NDCs, as of 4 November.

Last year, Ocean Conservancy analysed the NDCs of 62 coastal countries submitted in advance of the UN’s COP26 summit in Glasgow. The study showed that 85% of these countries included plans that touched on at least one of the climate solutions the ocean can provide. 

Campaigners are also seeing more tangible promises in the second round of NDC submissions. 

Loreley Picourt, executive director of the Ocean & Climate Platform, an alliance of nearly 100 ocean-focused organisations, says countries are moving forward from merely referencing ocean vulnerabilities, such as acidification, as was common in the first round of NDCs. In many updated submissions, countries laid out concrete measures and even nailed down measurable targets. For instance, in Chile’s latest NDC, the country has set specific targets such as designating at least 20 coastal wetlands as new protected areas by 2025.

Calls for wider action

Among the basket of ocean solutions, most of the coastal countries lean toward protecting and restoring blue carbon ecosystems. 

Ocean Conservancy’s analysis found that some 75% of the countries that mentioned the ocean in their NDCs have committed to protecting coastal ecosystems, such as mangroves, salt marshes and seagrasses, which can sequester and store blue carbon. 

Behind the wave of commitments, non-state actors, such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), have been campaigning and working closely with countries to launch blue carbon projects.

“But it is not enough,” the Ocean Conservancy’s Laura says. She highlights the relatively scarce mentions in NDCs of offshore renewable energy as climate solutions, compared to the prevalence of protection and restoration of blue carbon ecosystems.

Actions such as expanding offshore renewable energy and enhancing a blue economy were less common in the NDCs studied for the report, with only a handful of the 62 coastal nations analysed referencing such approaches.

Laura adds that solutions such as developing offshore wind farms require more government ambition and involvement, including dedicated policies to spur industry investment and technological innovation.

Seagrass and corals on the Saya de Malha Bank. The Saya de Malha Bank is part of the Mascarene Plateau and located between Mauritius and Seychelles in the Indian Ocean. It is the largest seagrass meadow in the world and one of the biggest carbon sinks in the high seas. (Image © Tommy Trenchard / Greenpeace)

She suggests that countries should look to overcome these challenges through multilateral cooperation and technology transfer, as the urgency of climate change doesn’t allow us to “leave any solutions on the table.”

Who are the ocean champions? 

Small island states and countries in the global south are leading the way in raising the profile of the ocean as a climate solution. 

The study by Ocean Conservancy found that archipelagic developing states, including Fiji, Cabo Verde and the Seychelles, are among the countries that include the widest range of ocean-based solutions in their NDCs. (continues...)

Author:  Regina Lam | Read the full article by clicking the link here

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