The COP27 theme for today is Solutions - examining how to make things work on the ground. We ask some questions about the things that might hinder solutions and then finish on a positive note looking at successes.
Omniscient God who knows everything from quarks to tectonic plates, we thank you for the solutions and innovations that you provide. We ask for a global, national and local (including us as individuals and as a church) willingness to invest in sustainable cities, sustainable transport, green buildings, alternatives to plastic. We ask that the outcomes of COP27 will not be lofty words but decisions and actions that will have a significant impact on climate change, poverty and justice.
Omniscient God, there is absolutely no limit to your knowledge and understanding and yet you chose to partner with us in the care of your world. Today the climate COP ends for another year. Many words will have been spoken and pledges made. We pray that these will be things of substance that will give rise to meaningful action. We pray for the relationships that have been forged between participants from different countries and from different walks of life. May these be strengthened to the benefit of your creation and to the benefit of the vulnerable and marginalised who desperately need change.
We thank you for the opportunity we’ve had over the last fortnight to consider some of the issues that have been addressed at COP27. They are interconnected and complex and we confess to feeling overwhelmed at times. We ask that you place on our hearts those things that you want us to think on, and that you nudge us to take action where required. May our faith be saturated with a desire be your justice in the world.
Psalm 147: 1-6 (NIV)
Praise the LORD. How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him! The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit. The LORD sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.
Isaiah 40: 28:31 (NIV)
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Romans 11: 33-36 (NIV)
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counsellor?” “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?” For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
Why would a page looking at solutions include a section on issues? Isn't that counterintuitive and a little negative? Actually it's about being realistic so that we create the best opportunities to succeed. We've considered the four areas of finance, regulation, technology and education because we've seen them discussed a lot. But we're not experts, so we've just asked some questions - some at a high level and some more personal.
Finance: Where will the money come from? Is our government keeping its commitment to give to developing countries and is it allocating sufficient to our own economy to bring about climate-related change? Do we need to ask questions of our politicians to keep finance on the agenda? Is big-business investing in social and environmental justice agendas? Do we need to influence through our the companies we buy from? Do we know how much we can afford to give as individuals and where to give it most effectively?
Regulation (national and local laws and regulations, policies, everything that governs how change is implemented): Do current regulations help or hinder change? Do planning policies protect the environment? Do they facilitate sustainable change or hinder it? Do financial regulations allow for innovative investment?
Technology: Is the technology being offered right for the community it is being offered to? Will it be straightforward to maintain? Have people been trained? Is the solution a result of collaboration or is it being imposed? Is there suitable investment (back to money) in promising novel technologies so that they can become mainstream? Are those of us who can afford it, buying into new technologies early while they are more expensive so that they become mainstream and cheaper?
Education: Does our education system include climate, environment and social justice issues across the whole of its curriculum? How can these issues be addressed with vulnerable people living in or close to poverty? Do we take time to inform ourselves of the issues? Can we tell the difference between good quality reporting and fake news? Do we know what's going on in our own communities that we could be part of? Have we assessed our own impact on the planet? Do we know how to assess our own impact on the planet? Is it actually necessary for us to assess our own impact on the planet?
The Kurzgesagt - In a Nutshell video (below) tackles some of these issues. It's about 16 minutes long but we think it's a worthwhile watch.
Collaborating COPs: Until recently we hadn't realised that there is more than one COP (Conferences of the Parties). If we've understood Wikipedia properly there are fifteen UN conventions with a COP (a COP is the supreme governingbody of an international convention). Two of these are relevant to climate change: the COP for the Convention on Biological Diversity and the COP for the Convention to Combat Desertification. We mention these because until recently the climate COP acted independently of the other two. However, in recent years more and more people have recognised the necessity to look for climate solutions that tackle all three issues. That must be good.
Collaborating organisations: Solutions can be big or relatively small but they always rely on collaboration between people. We think its worth celebrating the charities in Britain that work with local partners abroad to support the vulnerable, and who keep our eyes focused on their needs. Here's a selection of just six: Tearfund | Oxfam | Christian Aid | Save the Children | Water Aid | World Vision.
Technology development: There have been some big steps forward on the technology front over recent years. Return to the Hope section on the Energy page to be reminded of some related to energy. One of the COP27 sessions today is considering some of the solutions that arose from the Solar Impulse Foundation's call for 1000+ profitable solutions to protect the environment. The Foundation produced a Solutions Guide for Scotland for COP26 which makes interesting browsing. In a similar vein Project Drawdown brought together an international coalition of leading researchers, scientists and policymakers to offer a set of realistic and bold solutions to climate change. The video below lists the top ten and the one below it is a recent video by Bill Gates who acknowledges the scale of the job to be done, with realism and hope.
Us: whilst there's no escaping the fact that by virtue of being human we are all part of the problem, we all have the capacity to become part of the solution - and many already are. It's easy to feel hopeless and helpless in the face of the enormity of the issues we are living through, but there are also many reasons to feel hope. We think that prayerful consideration of the issues, and connection with others who share the same heart for action, is a powerful combination for change.
High level opening remarks: Setting the scene for the day to create a space to share best practices and lessons learnt and demonstrate the link between the innovative solutions and efforts to enhance the climate action.
Friends of greening national budgets / Investment Plans of African and developing countries: The initiative aims to provide climate solutions through shaping the process of planning and design of economic policies so that they (a) takes into account the impact of climate change, (b) quantify the efforts made in mitigation and adaptation, and (c) identify the gaps of the support needed.
Green Entrepreneurship: Success stories of entrepreneurs delivering low-emissions or climate resilient solutions in Egypt and Africa, along with discussion about support mechanisms and programs for climate entrepreneurs. Consideration of policies that foster climate entrepreneurs and reduce systemic barriers, e.g. building capacity and overcoming financing gaps.
Sustainable Transport and Urban Mobility: Official launch of the COP 27 presidency initiative in support of equitable, healthy, green and resilient transport pathways in Africa and the Global South. Innovative technologies will be showcased that are geared towards low-carbon, affordable and healthy transport solutions in the urban environment.
Climate Solutions by Private Sector: Dialogue between government officials/policy makers and the private sector where the private sector will showcase its commitment to deliver climate solutions in emerging and developing economies. It will include a discussion on challenges and opportunities in creating an enabling environment for private sector involvement in developing climate solutions.
Housing and Urban Ministerial on Cities and Climate Change: The Road from COP27 to WUF12: Official launch of the COP 27 presidency initiative SURGe (Sustainable Urban Resilience for the next Generation) and a ministerial panel discussion on urbanisation and climate change. The intention is to (a) increase the synergies between the climate and the urban communities, (b) deliver implementation for the multilevel action, and (c) contribute to raise ambition of NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions - what a country commits to doing to reduce its carbon emissions) and enhance adaptation and mitigation action at local and sub-national levels.
1000+ Clean & Efficient Solutions to COP27: In November 2017 the Solar Impulse Foundation launched the challenge of selecting 1000 solutions that could be guaranteed to be both clean and profitable to replace outdated and inefficient systems across entire sectors and in doing so spur sustainable growth. In April 2021 it surpassed that objective. This session aims to encourage participants and show them that clean and profitable solutions to protect the environment do exist.
Reinventing Waste Solutions for better future: Official launch of the COP 27 presidency initiative (50 by 2050) followed by a ministerial panel to discuss the waste management ecosystem in Africa and our aspirations for a better future. Then, youth will bring forward their ideas through practicable solutions and on-the-ground projects.
