COP28 Dispatch

What Congress Needs to Know from Dubai

Welcome! Today is Multilevel Action, Urbanization, Built Environment, and Transportation Day at COP28.

Today concludes the first half of the negotiations at COP28.

Over the course of the first seven days, delegates have submitted 78 announcements made at COP28 to the UNFCCC’s new, interactive platform within the Global Climate Action Portal.

This multilevel action day gave a spotlight to partnerships and collaborations between local and regional governments, national governments, and the private sector. More than 60 countries have signed on to the Coalition of High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) for Climate Action, rallying local governments to contribute their voices to NDCs.

Tomorrow is the rest day at COP when the venue is closed, so the newsletter will be taking a rest, too. We will be back in your inbox on Friday, December 8.

Miss yesterday’s edition? Check it out here. We are also compiling key COP28 announcements and reports throughout the conference—check back for updates.

Confused by COP terminology and acronyms? Check out EESI's glossary of terms and other helpful guides in the Resources section!

Key Takeaways for Congress

Negotiations saw a continued back-and-forth over fossil fuel phaseout/phasedown language. (Negotiations)
USAID announced $20 billion in private sector investment with the signing of a new partnership under their Comprehensive Action for Climate Change Initiative. (U.S. Updates)
The Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change focused on improved access to finance. (Around the World)

Negotiations

Negotiators on the global stocktake huddle to try to find a path
forward on the draft text. Credit: IISD/ENB | Mike Muzurakis.

Subsidiary Bodies close: The technical negotiations phase of COP28 formally ended today with the closing of the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI) and the Subsidiary Body on Science and Technological Advice (SBSTA). Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) reported: “By the end of the closing plenaries of the Subsidiary Bodies, limited progress was evident on several key deliverables for the success of this Conference of the Parties.” For updates on the negotiations, see the ENB’s daily report (detailed summary) and highlights (quick overview).
- EESI Briefing: What’s on the Table for the Negotiations?

Open dialogue: The COP28 Presidency continued the tradition of holding an open dialogue between country representatives and the nine observer constituency groups of the UNFCCC. This year’s discussion focused on “international cooperation, social dialogue, and multilevel action for the ‘inevitable and essential’ just energy transition that is fair, fast, orderly, equitable and responsible.” The farmers constituency group highlighted the importance of incorporating rural, agricultural workers in the just transition. The women and gender constituency group raised concerns about how non-paid labor would be considered in the context of a just transition. Spain spoke on behalf of the E.U. about member-country programs designed to support a just transition. The environmental NGOs constituency group asked fossil fuel-producing countries to talk about steps they will take to lead on fossil fuel phaseout and a just transition. Canada responded by saying that even though Canada has set new methane regulations and is a partner in the Powering Past Coal Alliance, there is much more work to be done and they would like to see this robust dialogue on the just transition to continue.

Global stocktake update: At a press conference hosted by Botswana and the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN 21), Climate Action Network Senior Global Energy Advisor Stephan Singer said that the current global stocktake text specifies that a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions is needed by 2035. Singer cautioned that the draft text has no legally-binding language.
- EESI Briefing: The First Global Stocktake

Renewables left behind: At the same press conference, panelists involved in negotiations lamented a lack of attention given to renewable energy and energy efficiency in draft negotiation texts. REN 21 Executive Secretary Rana Adib said that, thus far, these points have been “completely neglected” and “absent from the COP text and decisions.” Singer (mentioned above) added that an ongoing focus on “abated” versus “unabated” fossil fuel language has taken focus away from renewable energy discussions. Thandi Katlholo of the Botswana delegation called for the inclusion within the negotiating text of an elaborate renewable energy package with clear pathways for national governments to implement solutions.

E.U. leaders get ready for week two: The E.U. marked the end of the first week of COP28 by reaffirming its vision for the climate negotiations in a press conference, which featured European Commissioner for Climate Action Wopke Hoekstra and Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Teresa Ribera. Hoekstra’s remarks left no room for doubt, seemingly pushing back against the COP Presidency’s controversial narrative regarding a fossil fuel phaseout. “The E.U. is here to negotiate an outcome to the global stocktake that sets a higher bar,” asserted Hoekstra. “So let me again be clear where I stand, where the E.U. stands. I want this COP to mark the beginning of the end for fossil fuels. This is a key part for the E.U. and for our negotiating mandate, meaning that all 27 E.U. member states want this to be part of the negotiated outcome.” Ribera followed up by emphasizing the importance of climate finance, and encouraged conversations to clarify and broaden the understanding of what climate finance means. She stated, “We will not achieve 1.5° unless all financial flows are climate-proof.”

U.S. Updates

EESI press conference on U.S. perspectives on COP28 featuring
(from left) Daniel Bresette, Mayor Errick Simmons, Raya Salter,
Esq., and Michael Jeans (more details below). Credit: Carrie
Lederer | Carrier Pigeon Productions.

$20 billion for climate action: A significant private sector investment was announced today with the signing of a new partnership under the Comprehensive Action for Climate Change Initiative (CACCI). CACCI is a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) program that was launched at COP26 to provide technical and financial support specifically for African nations, but has since expanded in response to global demand. At today’s event, leaders from Genesis Energy and BG Titan Group pledged $10 billion dollars each to support sustainable projects in developing nations.

PREPARE-ing the private sector: A U.S. Center event provided updates on the President’s Emergency Plan on Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE), launched at COP27 to mobilize private sector resources, among other goals. USAID Administrator Samantha Power announced that 21 companies have joined PREPARE in the last year, mobilizing an estimated $2.3 billion in adaptation finance for developing countries. U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry highlighted a finding from PREPARE signatory Boston Consulting Group that every dollar a company invests in adaptation and resilience yields $2 to $15 dollars in financial benefits, through cost savings and avoiding loss and damage.

Catalyzing green investment: At a U.S. Center event, “Mobilizing and Localizing Climate Finance,” Samantha Power, USAID administrator, shared information on the 2024 launch of the Green Guarantee Company, which she called “the first privately-run guarantee company devoted to green bonds and loans in developing countries.” The initial investment of $100 million, which includes U.S. government funding, is expected to catalyze $1 billion in new investment for climate adaptation and mitigation in the least developed countries. Power also announced the first three of five grants to be made to insurance technology companies to develop climate solutions: Floodbase, Blue Marvel, and WTW.

U.S. perspectives on COP28: EESI organized a press conference featuring Mayor Errick Simmons of Greenville, Mississippi; Founder of the Energy Justice Law and Policy Center and EESI Board Member Raya Salter, Esq.; and President and CEO of Growth Opps Michael Jeans. Mayor Simmons discussed the “first-responder” role of mayors in community resilience and climate action. Salter raised the outstanding controversy over a fossil fuel phasedown as an impediment to progress at COP28, as well as the potential for the new U.S. Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to deliver multiple benefits to disadvantaged communities on the frontlines of climate change. Jeans described his work mobilizing capital in Cleveland and northeast Ohio to advance inclusive and equitable investments in communities of color.
- EESI Article: “Federal GHG Reduction Fund Programs to Spur Clean Energy Financing for Disadvantaged Communities”

The decarbonization movers and shakers: Another U.S. Center event featured the First Movers Coalition, a group of 95 companies working across industrial material production and transport. Together, these companies have made $15 billion worth of commitments toward decarbonizing the industrial sector by 2030. Microsoft’s Senior Director of Sustainability Policy Michelle Patron identified three policy levers for supporting decarbonization in the private sector: cultivate demand through targeted tax credits like the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA’s) carbon capture and storage credit; help scale the supply of carbon-free products by supporting innovative projects, such as through the DOE’s direct air capture and hydrogen hubs; and create standards that set criteria for how projects can qualify for federal benefits.
- EESI Briefing: The Latest on the Clean Energy Tax Incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act

Setting sail for decarbonized transportation: A panel discussion held at the U.S. Center showcased the country’s commitment to global maritime decarbonization with a focus on domestic ports. Department of Transportation Undersecretary for Policy Carlos Monje announced a preview of the U.S. Maritime Decarbonization Action Plan, to be released in 2024. The action plan will supplement the interagency U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization. Panelists discussed four key aspects of port emission reductions: finance and investment, workforce development, community engagement, and supply chains. The Ocean Pavilion dialogue on the topic of shipping also emphasized strategies to help ships decarbonize, such as leveraging hydrogen fuel and ensuring ships are retrofit-ready as decarbonization technology continues to evolve.
- EESI Resources: Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation at U.S. Ports (issue brief); “National Plan Aims to Eliminate Transportation Emissions” (article)

Building a more hopeful future: The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) held a press conference run by Chief Products Officer Sarah Zaleski. Zaleski opened the event by commending the Buildings Breakthrough initiative launched by France, Morocco, and the U.N. Environment Programme. The new initiative aims to achieve near-zero emissions and enhance resilience for the building sector by 2030. She also touted a new USGBC report, State of Decarbonization: Progress in U.S. Commercial Buildings 2023, which identifies high-impact opportunities to decarbonize the commercial real estate sector.
- EESI Article: “Achieving Sustainability in the Built Environment, Brick by Brick”

Exporting clean tech: At the event, “U.S. Industry Climate Solutions for Global Partners,” Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade Marisa Lago detailed the importance of U.S. climate innovation and clean technology, citing the President’s Export Council’s latest comprehensive climate recommendation. “The President’s Export Council believes that these [clean] technologies can unlock up to 30 gigatons of emission reductions per year,” Lago explained.
- EESI Podcast: “Representative Ro Khanna on the CHIPS and Science Act”

Greening U.S. cities: The Bezos Earth Fund’s Greening America’s Cities program supports projects that address systemic challenges in communities and ultimately allow local leaders to improve the livability of the city for all. At a Resilience Hub event on the $400 million program, mayors from Mississippi and Wisconsin, alongside local community leaders from Delaware and Illinois, discussed the interconnectedness of climate work, public safety, workforce training, and long-term community engagement.

Around the World

Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements
Programme (UN-Habitat) Maimunah Mohd Sharif addresses the
Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change.
Credit: EESI.

Cities for climate: The Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change was the marquee event on the day dedicated to cities, which account for 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Hosted by the COP28 Presidency, U.N.-Habitat, and the U.N. Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP28, the session contributed recommendations for engaging with subnational governments and aligning efforts with national targets. Improved access to financing was a major topic. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s Green Cities program, which has mobilized more than €5 billion ($5.39 billion) for 88 projects in 51 cities, was held up as an example for other multilateral development banks to direct resources to urban areas.

Indigenous call for loss and damage inclusion: At a side event on the topic of incorporating human rights in loss and damage funding, speakers from Indigenous communities spoke to the importance of ensuring Indigenous people have a formal seat at the table and full access to loss and damage funding. Director of the Climate Change Program of the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities Tunga Bhadra Rai highlighted the noneconomic losses and damages from climate change, and the lack of Indigenous representation in loss and damage conversations. “We are demanding to be on the board of the loss and damage fund and active observers in all this, simply because we need to be at the table when they talk about us,” he declared.

Due diligence for mineral security: At a U.N. Climate Change side event hosted by the Philippines, the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, and the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), panelists offered insights on the growing mining boom associated with the global clean energy transition. ICMM’s Rohitesh Dhawan urged tech companies to be willing partners to Indigenous communities to help secure trust among civil society. Mike Davis of the international NGO Global Witness offered the following policy recommendations for regulating the mining industry: legally requiring due diligence along supply chains for health and environmental impacts; requiring that mining and tech companies undertake prior informed consent processes with Indigenous communities; setting standards for transparency; ensuring that partnerships between foreign governments and producer countries are equitable, rather than just extractive; and ensuring that mining and tech companies do not “hold the pen” when it comes to drafting regulations.

Methane emissions research: A side event highlighted the Harvard Initiative on Reducing Global Methane Emissions, a recent undertaking of Harvard University’s Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability. Panelists showcased some of the dozens of projects that have been or will be undertaken by this three-year global initiative, including a satellite-based monitoring system that uses NOAA data to verify emission reductions and quantify methane concentrations in the U.S. Upcoming projects will address land use-related methane emissions (including from landfills) and agriculture-related methane emissions from livestock and rice paddies.
- EESI Briefing: Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases

Satellites for earth observation: At a side event on satellite observation for meeting climate goals, panelists discussed how satellites support data collection for initiatives like forestation and biomass estimations. Speaker Martin Herold, head of the Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics Section at GFZ Potsdam, outlined key emerging issues for satellite observation, including forest regrowth estimation and “aligning estimates for the global stocktake.” Sandro Federici, head of the Technical Support Unit for IPCC’s Task Force on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, introduced the latest IPCC inventory software, released last month.
- EESI Briefing: Innovation as Climate Action: Advances in Weather Forecasting

On board for clean transportation: A COP28 Presidency press conference provided updates on the Call to Action to double the share of energy efficient and fossil-free land transportation by 2030. The letter has been signed by more than 50 multi-sector organizations, and Chile and Colombia also signed on today. The Call to Action was organized by the Partnership for Sustainable Low Carbon Transport and REN 21 (mentioned above), in partnership with the International Union of Railways, the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, the International Association of Public Transport, the World Resources Institute, and others.
- EESI Article: "Q&A: Charging Towards Electric Heavy-Duty Transportation"

Other News

Rev. Susan Hendershot, president of Interfaith Power and Light,
shares a passage from the Book of Micah at a panel about
environmental stewardship and the leadership role for faith-based
organizations in the transition to a decarbonized, clean energy
economy. Credit: EESI.

Territorial solutions to climate change: The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) held a session at the Japan Pavilion for a panel discussion on place-based climate action and the launch of OECD’s report, A Territorial Approach to Climate Action and Resilience. This report illustrates the variability of mitigation and adaptation solutions across geographies and presents a framework for urban, rural, and regional climate policies. Place-based policy solutions to climate change can offer many advantages, including the potential for more ambitious targets than those at the national level, as well as the opportunity to better integrate factors of wellbeing into climate action.

Green technology book launched: At a side event on mitigation and land restoration technologies, Peter Oksen of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) launched WIPO’s 2023 Green Technology Book, which details the state of play and feasibility for hundreds of technologies and solutions for climate change. As Oksen explained, given the global nature of climate change, the world needs thousands of game-changing solutions, not just one or two.

The meaning of net-zero: At this side event, speakers from two panels—one for government and civil society, the other for science and solutions—shared their differing perspectives on how to best meet the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, and the role of fossil fuel abatement in achieving that goal. Catherine Abreu, founder and executive director of Destination Zero, highlighted concerns that abatement is being used as an “escape hatch” to allow “business as usual” to continue.

Resources

EESI resources

Article series: Quick reads connecting international climate talks to Congress
Briefing series: What Congress Needs to Know About COP28
- Congress and International Climate Finance
- What's on the Table for the Negotiations?
- The First Global Stocktake
Climate Change Solutions: Bi-weekly newsletter covering climate, energy, and environmental issues
COP28 Announcement Tracker: Key Announcements from the 2023 U.N. Climate Summit
COP28 Report Tracker: Key Climate Reports Launched at the 2023 U.N. Climate Summit
U.S. Leaders at COP28: Updates on Members of Congress and Other U.S. Officials at the 2023 U.N. Climate Summit
EESI's United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Glossary of Terms

Tracking the negotiations

CarbonBrief: Reporting and analysis on the U.N. climate talks, with in-depth tracking of country positions in the negotiations
COP28 Resource Hub: World Resources Institute's extensive set of resources on the climate negotiations
Earth Negotiations Bulletin: A play-by-play of the negotiations, plus expert analysis from the International Institute for Sustainable Development
ECO Newsletter: The climate advocate’s perspective from Climate Action Network International

Background and logistics

U.A.E. COP28 Presidency website: Priorities, details, and logistics for the negotiations from this year’s host country
UNFCCC COP28 website: Conference details and all updates on documents produced during the negotiations
Congressional Research Service: Reports related to the UNFCCC

Questions about COP28?

Reach out to EESI Policy Manager Anna McGinn with your questions. We will get back to you or include the information in an upcoming newsletter.

Thanks for reading!

This newsletter covering COP28 will be running from November 30 to December 12.
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Staff contributors: Daniel Bresette, Molly Brind’Amour, Alison Davis, Amaury Laporte, Anna McGinn, and Nicole Pouy

About EESI

EESI is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit advancing science-based solutions for climate change, energy, and environmental challenges to achieve a sustainable, resilient, and equitable world. Founded on a bipartisan basis by members of Congress, EESI has been informing policymakers about the benefits of energy efficiency, renewable energy, and environmental conservation since 1984.

CFC #10627