The Day After Tomorrow – Prepare for an Ambitious WIM review

27 June 2019

ECO has observed that loss and damage negotiators have been working hard here to find an agreement on the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the review of the Warsaw Mechanism. The heatwave in Europe hopefully has inserted pressure to come to an agreement (hm…is that the reason why “one party” did not accept reference to the IPCC reports? Given the overwhelming real-time impacts of climate change happening now everywhere, this Party may have found the IPCC reports no longer necessary€¦? ECO does not at all support any rationale that aims to disregard the IPCC!).

Now it is time for negotiators, when they arrive home the day after tomorrow, to get prepared for the next round of submissions €” wherever you may spend your holidays, you may find inspiration from some relaxing.

ECO would have loved to see the ToRs being more clearly guided by the needs of vulnerable countries, its people and ecosystems, for whom the WIM has been set up. But even after so many years in the process, ECO still learned something new: the review will take place even in the absence of the ToRs. So in case Parties do not manage to agree on the ToR, each Party could proceed on its own discretion. Agreed ToRs are of course much more preferable! 

So, ECO will look for the submissions to speak more clearly to options to provide the resourcing to both the WIM and to vulnerable countries to confront, and recover from, losses and damages associated to the impacts of climate change.

ECO would like to encourage everyone to submit their views early, before the Pre-COP, so ministers can come well-informed and advance the review discussions on the political level. There would be no excuse not to involve ministers in a targeted manner on the WIM review. A strong WIM outcome would constitute a key element for a successful COP25!  

And finally a reminder in particular to big emitters: the more your revised NDCs and your climate actions will be compatible with 1.5°C, the less you have to worry about others claiming loss and damage finance from you!