In late November, the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) is set to commence in Dubai. Occurring at the conclusion of a year marked by numerous heat records, the event aims to establish a foundation for a significant effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance global climate change adaptation.
However, warnings from climate activists and civil society precede the conference, expressing concerns that without a substantial shift in the approach to climate policies, COP28 may fall short of achieving meaningful progress.
In the Global South, persistent apprehension exists that affluent nations and international corporations will advocate for policies enabling them to maintain business as usual, leaving poorer nations, least responsible for climate change, to bear the brunt of the climate crisis.
Similar trends have been noted at past climate events, including the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi in early September.
The summit, attended by representatives from governments, businesses, international organizations, and civil society, aimed to enable African nations to establish a unified stance on issues such as compensation for loss and damage, climate mitigation, and climate finance ahead of COP28.
However, the final document, the Nairobi Declaration, did not reflect consensus and the best interests of African nations. This outcome is unsurprising, as lobbyists for Global North countries and corporations were granted space and high-level access to advocate for false solutions. Meanwhile, many delegates, including activists and civil society members seeking clarity and solutions to support their continent, encountered access difficulties during proceedings and felt marginalized.
Consequently, rather than advocating for policies that would lead the Global North to compensate African nations for its historical greenhouse gas emissions, which have contributed to global warming, the summit endorsed policies that will exacerbate the challenges faced by African nations.
The summit's declaration heavily emphasized and legitimized problematic practices such as carbon credits, offsetting, and trading.
These solutions are deceptive and do not address Africa's actual needs. They represent a neocolonial strategy that permits the Global North to persist in emitting greenhouse gases while maintaining control over African land and people, all while taking credit for reductions in African emissions.
Carbon trading operates on the premise that carbon dioxide emissions in one location can be "offset" by expanding carbon capture activities elsewhere, such as planting new trees or protecting forests to facilitate natural regeneration. This allows major carbon emitters in the Global North to compensate nature-rich countries in the Global South for preserving or expanding forested areas.
However, many of these areas are inhabited by local communities that rely on forests and land for their livelihoods and sustenance. Carbon trading schemes effectively displace people from their homelands and strip them of their rights in the name of preservation and carbon capture.
It has been extensively documented that these schemes are failing to address the surge in carbon emissions and are enabling the greenwashing of wealthy corporations and nations that resist reducing their emissions.
If carbon trading proves to be an inadequate solution, how can the Global North assist African countries in financing loss and damage, adaptation, and mitigation?
Cap and share is one alternative model gaining traction among climate activists and civil society. The system revolves around an international carbon tax that would compel polluters, including fossil fuel extractors and major consumers in the Global North, to pay.
This tax, levied on fossil fuel extraction, would generate trillions of dollars annually for a global Green New Deal fund, dedicated to financing the transition to renewables and ensuring energy access for all. The fund's revenue would also allocate grants for loss and damage, adaptation, and mitigation in the Global South, along with universal cash transfers to support ordinary individuals.
Cap and share proposes a taxation system that transcends national borders, a crucial element for climate justice that is long overdue. Modeling indicates that the economic impact of a global carbon tax would be highly progressive, with Africa experiencing significant benefits, including the permanent elimination of extreme poverty in all participating nations. This policy can be implemented in conjunction with universal basic income and tax justice measures.
As we approach COP28, it is imperative not to replicate the mistakes of the Africa Climate Summit and similar climate events. The voices of climate activists and civil society from the Global South must be acknowledged.
We reject carbon markets. We reject selling Africa's carbon, forests, and land to the North. We advocate for climate justice and climate finance free from restrictive conditions.
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
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