The good news first: A Filipino artist bagged the first place in the COP26 art competition. Digital artist Bricx Martillo Dumas of Leyte won first place in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) art competition, DigitalArt4Climate, with his work dubbed “Nexus.”
The winning piece shows a hand holding a drink in a plastic bag with a straw, and a cigarette whose smoke dissipates into tiny leaves. It is one of 208 artworks submitted from 58 countries, and the only entry from the Philippines. The winners were decided through online voting, with the prize for first place at 1,500 euros. The other winners, who are from Iran, France, the United States, and Kenya, will each receive 500 euros.
Now the bad news: The COP26 in Glasgow ended on Saturday failing to achieve the three criteria for success earlier announced by the United Nations. The UN’s criteria included pledges to cut carbon-dioxide emissions in half by 2030; $100 billion in financial aid from rich nations to the developing world; and ensuring that half of that money went to helping poor countries adapt to the worst effects of climate change.
“We did not achieve these goals. Our fragile planet is hanging by a thread,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement. “We are still knocking on the door of climate catastrophe. But we have some building blocks for progress.”
From the Associated Press: “Almost 200 nations accepted a compromise deal Saturday aimed at keeping a key global warming target alive, but it contained a last-minute change that watered down crucial language about coal. Several countries, including small island states, said they were deeply disappointed by the change promoted by India to “phase down,” rather than “phase out” coal power, the single biggest source of greenhouse-gas emissions.”
In the run-up to the COP26 in Glasgow, host Britain announced that one of the summit’s goals was to consign coal to history. The focus on coal was explained by the fact that of the three fossil fuels—coal, oil and natural gas—coal is the biggest climate villain. It is responsible for about 20 percent of all greenhouse-gas emissions. The burning of coal also has other environmental impacts, including air pollution contributing to smog, acid rain and respiratory illnesses.
At the COP26, the Philippines was one of more than 40 countries that agreed to a deal seeking to phase out the use of coal-fired power. The Department of Energy said the Philippines affirmed its commitment in Glasgow “to shift away from the world’s dirtiest fossil fuel.” Unfortunately, the world’s largest emitters—China, the US, and India—did not sign up.
Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said his department would support the following goals: 1) To rapidly scale up deployment of clean power generation and energy efficiency measures in our economies, and to support other countries to do the same, recognizing the leadership shown by countries making ambitious commitments, including through the Energy Transition Council. 2) To rapidly scale up technologies and policies in this decade. 3) To strengthen our domestic and international efforts to provide a robust framework of financial, technical, and social support to affected workers.
However, the Energy chief, who signed on behalf of the Philippines, did not commit to all clauses of the agreement, such as putting an end to all investment in new coal power generation projects, and phasing out coal power in economies in the 2030s for major economies and 2040s globally. “We cannot behave like developed economies since we are a developing country. Nonetheless, we remain committed to a gradual transition to renewable energy,” Cusi said.
In a keynote speech during the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Duterte said rich nations should deliver on their financial pledges to address the impacts of climate change in developing countries. “Developed countries must fulfill their longstanding commitment to climate financing, technology transfer, and capacity-building in the developing world. This is a moral obligation that cannot be avoided,” Duterte said, adding that the shift to a green economy, which builds social equity while reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities, “must not be at the expense of developing countries’ economic vitality.”
Those words, unfortunately, fell on deaf ears as COP26 negotiators from rich countries, whose emissions are responsible for most of human-caused climate change, failed to act on a long-held promise to deliver $100 billion a year by 2020 to support poorer countries’ efforts to cope with the effects of global warming.