Ahead of COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, in November, the Pre-COP climate summit in Fiji and Tuvalu has commenced, with calls to keep the 1.5°C within reach, improve access to climate finance and give greater attention to the impact of climate change on the world’s oceans.
Commenting the summit, which runs from 5 to 8 October, Chris Bowen MP, Australia‘s minister for climate change and energy and president of negotiations for COP31 said that it will “help drive more of the collective action making a worldwide impact, with a focus on delivering cleaner and more secure energy, unlocking investment and strengthening climate resilience.
“Over four days of sessions and bilateral meetings, leaders and delegates will work to build climate and clean energy momentum and ensure every country can share in the jobs and economic benefits of the renewable energy transition.”
Ministers and attendees from more than 50 countries are expected to participate in the summit.
‘Important milestone’
Elsewhere, Greenpeace said that the event represents an ‘important milestone’ on the road to COP31, with Pacific communities feeling the brunt of rising sea levels.
“For Pacific communities, 1.5°C is a lifeline and ‘overshoot’ is not a harmless technical scenario in which temperatures rise temporarily before being brought back down,” commented Jasper Inventor, deputy international program director, Greenpeace International.
“Every fraction of a degree means greater loss and damage, more displacement, and deeper threats to cultures, livelihoods and sovereignty. Asking the Pacific to endure overshoot is asking communities to absorb harm for the continued emissions of polluters.”
‘Concrete commitments’
Agnès Callamard, secretary general of Amnesty International, echoed this sentiment, adding that the searing heatwaves experienced by Europe this summer, coupled with the looming threat of a powerful El Niño, underscore the need for decisive climate action in vulnerable regions.
“World leaders have spent years talking about the climate threats facing the Pacific,” she commented. “Now they must come to Fiji and Tuvalu, listen to Pacific communities and act. Rising seas are already eating away at people’s lands, livelihoods and cultures. Concern without action will not hold back the tide.
“Those who do not show up in person cannot evade their responsibilities. Their absence will not stop the seas from rising or erase the obligations of high-emitting countries towards communities paying the highest price for a crisis they did least to cause. […] Pre-COP31 must turn years of rhetoric into concrete commitments and action that deliver the climate ambition the world needs at COP31 in November.”
‘Set their priorities’
Commenting on its own participation in the pre-COP summit, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that the summit represents an opportunity to highlight how climate action and health are closely connected.
“This Pre-COP is an important moment for the Pacific, bringing global climate discussions to a region that has long been at the forefront of the climate crisis,” commented Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific.
“It provides an opportunity for Pacific countries and areas to set their priorities, experiences and leadership on the global stage, and to ensure that the realities of Pacific communities are genuinely reflected in the decisions made on climate action.”
More information on the Pre-COP meeting can be found here.
