WSDS 2024: The developed and the developing countries climate change chasm remains; finance and technology transfer need of the hour
Ministers from various countries attended the World Sustainable Development Summit convened by The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI) and delivered the paths for sustainable development. R K Singh, Minister of Power and New and Renewable Energy, says, “44% of power generation is from non- fossil fuels. By 2030 we will have 50% non- fossil fuels. The developing countries need to develop and for that we need carbon space.”
He adds, “Sustainable development holds on two planks- one rapid emitters should bring down their rate of emissions. Second, those who need to develop, whose average per capita income is $ 6,000- 7,000 and aspire to reach $58,000 dollars they should be assisted with technology and finance to bring down the cost of transition.”
Shombi Sharp, United Nations Resident Coordinator in India, says, “The cruel irony is that some half of the world’s most climate vulnerable countries, those who have done the least to create this problem, are not facing the greatest impacts but they are also on debt row.”
He further says, “They are increasingly forced to make a decision between paying the interest on debt and putting food on the table for their people while investing in resilience in the face of the crisis that is killing lives already.”
The much talked about issue of lifestyle for sustainable development was also discussed. R R Rashmi, Distinguished Fellow, TERI pointed out, “There cannot be a common perspective on lifestyle choices, the societies are at different stages of development, so everybody comes with their own mindset.”
On the other hand, Tim Gould, Chief Energy Economist, The International Energy Agency (IEA), says, “The majority of the change have to be done in the advanced economies, because that is where excessive consumption in some sense is concentrated.”
WSDS concluded today with the release of the Act4Earth Manifesto. The Manifesto summarised the learnings from the 16 plenaries and 31 thematic tracks that were held during the three-day event.
During the summit subject matter experts, industry captains, ministers and youth focussed on wide range of issues like climate justice, role of knowledge institutions, sustainable development in the time of polycrisis, green infrastructure, green energy, women led green development, spirituality and climate change, carbon markets, climate finance- all of it impacting the wider climate discourse.