November 16, 2022
Reflections on COP 27
COP27 is in its final rounds. For The Landbanking Group team, it was an inflection point. And it invites for critical reflection.
Five observations:
1. The climate process is dramatically off track: Current policies put us on track to 2,7 degrees warming, half-hearted NDCs to 2,1 degrees, and we are already confronted with five irreversible earth system tipping points now.
2. The call for climate justice is more than background noise, it sets the debate: The rich economies are discovering that their climate future starts with recognizing their fossil past. Without an agreement of Loss & Damages and massive support to the global South no climate deal will ever emerge.
3. The business case for climate action starts to turn against the laggards. The business rationale for an accelerated transition is getting stronger. Stranded asset risk of laggards increasingly beats the risk associated with low-carbon technology and circular business models. Too many businesses are still overdiscounting the future, essentially leaving long-term shareholders exposed to future risks.
4. If there is a chance for a first-of-its-kind global movement, COP27 failed to grasp it: Perhaps the first time in history, an alliance between youth, indigenous communities, businesses, governments, scientists is available to charts the course – if we only allow it to happen. Conventions like a COP, despite their costs and in-built emissions - could create these needed moments of coalescence. COP27 clearly did not. It was loud and stressing, no agenda, no compass, no condensation points for people to meet, build trust and confidence in bigger plans. Instead, it was a stage for a fossil renaissance and a canvass for global service firms.
5. At its very root, we need to redefine our economy’s relationship with nature. Climate change and biodiversity loss are the result of nature being undervalued and underpriced and it all started with declaring the economy external to nature. There is a surge of technologies and solutions available to help manage nature as if it mattered. Whether this opportunity is grasped on behalf of nature and nature-based communities will depend on the market design we chose. The test is out. We, the Landbanking team, are dedicated to play our best game to make it work.