The negotiations for the Global Stocktake (GST) during COP26 are now over. Congratulations! This means we are beginning the first GST process. Now we are on our way to technical dialogues, submission phases, workshops, data analysis, output production…
So we still have a lot to do. And by “we”, ECO means all possible actors at the UNFCCC. Non-state actors have to submit inputs for the GST, as well as Parties. ECO supports the inclusion of civil society in the GST process. However, this means financial and technical support for all constituencies as well as developing countries to be able to be fully part of the process. But ECO will come back another day to this issue.
Today, ECO would like to talk about the guiding questions of the GST. Now, there are 43 guiding questions proposed by the SBSTA chair. ECO thanks the chair for this work. But we think several important topics and aspects of climate policies are still missing.
Why is this important? To ECO, the main aim of the GST should be to protect the most vulnerable from the impacts of climate change. This can’t happen without an adequate consideration of adaptation and loss and damage and the protection of ecosystems, terrestrial and marine alike, as well as keeping the planet livable for youth and future generations. For this aim to be achieved, we are proposing a first list of five priority questions to add to the list.
- Loss and Damage: What is the loss and damage that people and communities have experienced from climate change, including extreme weather events? What are the needs to address this and the challenges that they face?
- Loss and Damage Finance: What finance is there already and how much more is required, and what is the strategy to unlock it?
- Nature Protection and Restoration: What progress has been made, how much further does it need to go, and what contribution does it make towards climate action?
- Fossil Fuels: What steps have been taken to phase them out, and what more can be done?
- Human Rights and Inclusion: How have rights been protected and used to overcome and address challenges of participation and justice, and how can this be improved? How have gender issues, and local and Indigenous climate action, been included?
ECO hopes that the discussion on the guiding questions will be inclusive and productive in the coming months, so that the GST will fully answer what we need to know to be sure we are on track for the Paris Agreement. This is what the GST should be about.