15 August, 2020

Making sense of the politics in the climate change loss & damage debate

Authors

Olivia Serdeczny, E. Calliari, L. Vanhala

This article looks at the politics of loss and damage and inquires into negotiators' perceptions of the most contentious issues surrounding loss and damage negotiations.

It shows how the legitimacy of loss and damage as a negotiations issue is still not accepted by all and how compensation has different connotations for different negotiators.

The paper argues that loss and damage is an ultimately political issue with distributional consequences and as such should not be treated as a purely technical problem.

Loss and damage

Publications

Calculating the loss and damage finance gap: a scoping and feasibility exercise

At COP28, delegates agreed to operationalise a fund to compensate vulnerable countries coping with loss and damage caused by climate change. This report proposes a method for how to calculate how much finance the Global South needs for loss and damage.

Economic and non-economic loss and damage: a harmful dichotomy?

Loss and damage is treated as comprising separate ‘economic’ and ‘non-economic’ dimensions. This commentary argues that the two are inextricably linked and applied research should account for the multifaceted and cascading nature of loss and damage.

How can event attribution science underpin financial decisions on Loss and Damage?

With climate extremes hitting nations across the globe, disproportionately burdening vulnerable developing countries, funding for loss and damage is an acute need. Attribution science can provide useful information for decision makers.

Using existing databases to report on loss and damage in Biennial Transparency Reports under the UNFCCC

Calculating financing needs to respond to loss and damage requires response activities to be costed. However, comprehensive assessments of current and future loss and damage costs are largely unavailable. This briefing proposes using existing databases as proxies in the interim.

A review of loss and damage in the Caribbean (1994 to 2024)

Loss and damage from climate change has been the lived reality of Caribbean small island developing states (SIDS) for decades. Despite efforts to adapt, it is reversing development gains, leaving lasting financial stress, and causing irreparable damage, including the loss of cultural heritage. This report is the first to provide a systematic overview of how Caribbean countries are framing and reporting on loss and damage.

The impacts of multiple tropical cyclone events and associated precipitation on household income and expenditures

Climate change-fueled tropical cyclones have already reduced household incomes across the Philippines by 7% on average, according to a new study. This figure rises to more than 20% in some provinces.

The 1.5°C limit and risks of overshoot

This briefing looks at what the 1.5°C limit means in terms of adaptation and loss and damage for the most vulnerable countries and regions. It finds that slowing down warming is critical to buy us time to adapt and also to avoid irreversible loss and damage. Even if warming rises above 1.5°C (overshoot) we can bring it down again with ambitious emissions reductions.

Le seuil de +1,5°C et le risque de dépassement de ce seuil

Ce rapport examine ce que la limite de 1,5 °C signifie en termes d'adaptation et de pertes et dommages pour les pays et régions les plus vulnérables. Il constate qu'il est essentiel de ralentir le réchauffement pour nous donner le temps de nous adapter et pour éviter des pertes et des dommages irréversibles. Même si le réchauffement dépasse 1,5 °C, nous pouvons le faire baisser à nouveau en réduisant les émissions de manière ambitieuse.

Climate justice: loss and damage and the right to development

Our Submission to the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development 2024 offers advice on how to set up the administration and operationalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund with a human rights-based approach and a climate justice lens that supports the right to development.

Climate justice and loss and damage: perspectives from the global south

This article outlines the loss and damage debate through a climate justice lens with particular emphasis on Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries. It examines the latest developments of the new loss and damage fund including operationalisation.

Carbon majors’ trillion dollar damages

In this report we explore who could pay for loss and damage through the lens of responsibility for historic emissions, and the financial gains generated from selling oil and gas.

Coastal loss and damage for small islands

This commentary on a paper in Nature Sustainability reviews how the study quantifies the impacts of sea-level rise on small island states and estimates the impacts in terms of cost, land loss and population exposure across all small islands worldwide.

About us

Decarbonisation targets and 1.5℃ pathways

Comment