Our messages were loud and clear at COP27: KAIROS
Re: “Little to celebrate so far from Canada’s COP27 attendance,” (The Hill Times, Nov. 16, editorial). Global summits are what participants make them, and who participates in them, too. I have just returned from COP27, where I accompanied a 10-member delegation sponsored by KAIROS Canada and For the Love of Creation. They included Indigenous partners and youth from Turtle Island, KAIROS Women, Peace and Security, and global solidarity partners. Our delegation sought to bring some of the voices of those who are most affected by the climate crisis, least heard and most likely to have effective sustainable solutions to COP27.
As one of the delegates said: “I’m glad that I’m here in order to bring the voice of my people, the women in my community, and my organization to this COP.” She and others joined the numerous and diverse voices of civil society organizations and movements in calling for an urgent response to the climate crisis that includes Indigenous rights, gender justice, loss and damage, and funding for adaptation that is accessible to local communities that are most affected by climate change. Despite the restricted space, high security, and having to compete with a powerful fossil fuel lobby, these messages were loud and clear at COP27.
The creation of a UN loss and damages fund in the final statement is a testament of the power of civil society and countries in the Global South that have been calling for this for decades. We commend Canada for the important role it played in offering support for this call. Now, it must help fund loss and damage, and ensure that those most impacted by the climate crisis, particularly wom[1]en, Indigenous peoples and youth, are involved in decisions about these funds, in addition to adaptation strategies and the fossil fuel phase-out and non-proliferation, a clarion call from civil society that was conspicuously absent from the final statement of COP27.
Rachel Warden Partnerships manager KAIROS Toronto Toronto, Ont.
This letter was published in The Hill Times on November 28, 2022.
