OHPA Weekly Newsletter #4
Week of May 3rd 2024
Greetings and welcome to the latest weekly installment of the OHPA’s newsletter, curating the week’s most important and interesting developments in Anthropocene politics.
UK Government defeated in court over emissions rates
The High Court ruled Friday morning the government has not done enough to reduce emissions to adequate levels, forcing Downing Street to redraft its plan. Rishi Sunak’s trepidatious government has already come under fire and lost in a previous ruling regarding its lack of stringent emissions regulations and failing to cut emission rate targets. This represents another example in the windfall of policy failures the Conservatives have created over the past several years. The current government is forecast to loose in a landslide to Labour in this year’s elections.
Source: BBC
COP29 Host Azerbaijan declares its continued investment in Fossil Fuels
Azeri President Aliyev announced that despite hosting the climate summit, the nation will continue to invest in natural gas production in oder to fulfill an export agreement with the EU. Azerbaijan already exports nearly half of its natural gas to the EU; in December they announced they were on track to double that amount (24 bn cubic meter) by 2027. This is vital geopolitically insofar as it allows thee EU some breathing room for its clean energy transition without relying upon Russian fuel.
Source: Reuters
Tuvalu hosts Climate Diplomacy Training ahead of COP29
In preparation for the aforementioned COP29 which will take place in November, Tuvalu has hosted a climate diplomacy negotiation training aimed at other Oceania states which are already disproportionately suffering from sea level rise. The training was assisted by the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub (CCFAH), which is aimed at assisting smaller delegations become more effective at climate summits, which is typically challenging for delegations from smaller states as they lack both resources and diplomatic power. Tuvalu is famous for leading the charge and defending the rights of small island-states in Oceania and the Caribbean. Lead by Tuvalu and Antigua in past summits, coalitions of such nations have had disproportionate impacts on international climate deliberations, creating a resounding impression on past negotiations.
Source: The Commonwealth
Early Summer heat in Asia labelled “most extreme event” in climate history
This week, across southern Asia a brutal heatwave killed multiple people and forced a litany of closures across the continent. India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Pakistan, and Myanmar are the most affected, which experts are predicting is exacerbating inequality issues by increasing threats of forest fires, droughts, heat stroke and heat-related deaths. Bangkok temperatures reached a staggering 51 degrees celsius (125 Fahrenheit) Thursday. Scientists predict this will affect poorer populations disproportionately, and protests in Northern India have begun criticizing the government’s lack of action.
Source: CBS news