Our world leading academics on sustainability and the environment give their comments, hopes and concerns for the 'Conference of the Parties' climate summit.
A ‘bold vision’ and ‘very positive’ were comments from leading climate experts at Oxford Saïd for the speech by the UK's Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, at the COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan. But there was caution as well from our academics both in Baku and Oxford, with a focus on investment, climate finance and, as ever, the need for action.
From Baku today, Professor Juliane Reinecke, Oxford Saïd Professor of Management Studies, reacted to the Prime Minister's comments, pointing out: ‘COP29 is taking place at a very challenging moment following the US election and ongoing global conflicts….it is even more important to achieve outcomes such as advancing agreements on climate finance…to demonstrate that global cooperation is alive and effective.'
She added: ‘Individual leaders must step up to reaffirm their commitment to climate goals, and in this light it is very positive to see Keir Starmer is willing to do so. The question is a) whether this inspires other world leaders to follow and b) how this will be translated into actual actions and policy decisions at home.’
Dr Abrar Chaudhury, from Oxford Saïd and the School of Geography and Environment, said: ‘With uncertainty surrounding the US’s climate role beyond 2024, Keir Starmer has outlined a bold vision at COP 29: for the UK to lead the global clean energy transition toward a cleaner, more prosperous future, driven by investments in renewables, hydrogen, and carbon capture. The UK’s target is ambitious - an 81% reduction in emissions by 2035, generating thousands of jobs in the process.’
Dr Chaudhury continued: ‘Recognising that public finance is stretched, Sir Keir urged the private sector to embrace climate action as an economic opportunity rather than a threat, positioning the UK to become the world’s climate finance leader. He also pledged to launch a £75 billion fund to support climate action in developing countries - a significant commitment, especially given its historically limited funding under the Paris Agreement. However, the true test will be the UK’s actual contributions to the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG), as developing countries call for raising ambition from $100 billion to $1 trillion by 2025.'