Repay the Climate Debt

Fabby TumiwaInstitute for Essential Services Reform

IndonesiaBrussel, 15 June 2010

Source: Nature (2009)

2°C - a halfway to go!

Climate Debt

• UNFCCC Preamble: “Noting that the largest share of historical and current global emissions of GHG has originated in developed countries, that per capita emissions in developing countries are still relatively low and that the share of global emissions originating in developing countries will grow to meet their social and development needs.”

Climate Debt

• Annex 1 (The North) has advantage of past growth based on abundant use natural resources from the South, leading to greater infrastructure, technology, human and social capacity, and excessive carbon emissions.

• The North is capable to turn economy and society around and achieve low-carbon economy and growth

Climate Debt

• Developing Countries no longer have the low-cost carbon resources to base its development– Atmospheric space is limited because excessive use of the

North in the past– Facing challenges: mitigating and adapting to climate

change

contraction,convergence AND compensationcompensation

Per

cap

ita

em

issi

on

s

210020502000

Convergence target

Industrial countries emission profile

Developing countries emission profile

What do we demand?

• Repay adaptation debt• Repay emission debt: deep cut• Make available financing and technology to

cover additional cost to do mitigation and adaptation