One Step Forward, Two Steps Back – Gains and losses at COP 27
It took nearly two extra days, but this year’s UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, were saved by a landmark agreement to establish a Loss and Damage fund that will see the world’s most vulnerable peoples compensated for their losses due to climate change.
“The Loss and Damage fund is a first step to ensuring climate justice. In the further development of the fund, we will work hard to ensure that Inuit, who have been on the front lines of climate changes for decades, will have equitable access to the fund,” said Sara Olsvig, ICC’s International Chair. “Despite the severe urgency of climate change and the increased extreme weather events, parties failed to agree on adding strong language to phase out fossil fuels.”
“Other concerns for Inuit in the Sharm El-Sheikh final agreement include the fact that there are fewer references to Indigenous Peoples and human rights than in the 2021 COP26 statement in Glasgow”, she said, “or the kinds of emissions reduction commitments needed to keep the target of holding global average temperature increases to 1.5C or less.”
“The lack of human rights language is also a major concern.” said Lisa Koperqualuk, President of ICC Canada.
“Language on human rights was on and off the table during the COP27, and the end result is a step back as the language included last year in the Glasgow Pact is now gone, which shows that human rights are not seen as fundamental principles by states, unfortunately.”
“It’s one step forward, two steps back,” Koperqualuk added. “But we don’t give up.”
Both Olsvig and Koperqualuk pointed to a number of positive outcomes for the Inuit delegation this year.
“Our message and recommendations were heard everywhere,” said Olsvig. “Our delegates spoke on many platforms and interacted with many world leaders, other Indigenous Peoples and government delegations.”
For COP 27, Inuit produced a strong position paper with five clear recommendations that highlighted Inuit requests to international leaders, the science community, private industry and others (see annex below).
A number of high-level meetings took place including with Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Canada and Canada’s Ambassador for Climate Change, Catherine Stewart. National Inuit Youth Council President, Brian Pottle, met with the President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, together with Indigenous representatives from the other regions of the world. ICC International Chair Sara Olsvig took part in a roundtable with US Special Presidential Envoy on Climate Change John Kerry and met the Danish Minister for Climate Dan Jørgensen.
ICC participated in numerous side events and co-organized events together with the Saami Council on Arctic Governance and Climate Change and the Quaker UN Office on Arctic Climate Justice.
Inuit worked with the Arctic Caucus as well as with the larger Indigenous Peoples Caucus and were involved in the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform Facilitative Working Group knowledge sharing events with elders and youth.
“I want to commend our youth and elder delegates at the COP27,” said ICC Chair Sara Olsvig. “They all provided important insights to our reality as an Arctic Indigenous People, and their participation was extremely valuable.”
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Contact:
Tukumminnguaq Olsen Melodie Lavallée Eilene Adams
ICC (Greenland and Chairs office) ICC (Canada) ICC (Alaska)
tukumminnguaq@inuit.org mlavallee@inuitcircumpolar.com eilene@iccalaska.org
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Founded in 1977 by the late Eben Hopson of Sr. of Utqiagvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska, the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) has flourished and grown into a major international non-governmental organization representing approximately 180,000 Inuit of Alaska, Canada, Greenland, and Chukotka (Russia). ICC works to promote Inuit rights, safeguard the Arctic environment, and protect and promote the Inuit way of life.