February 25th 2022

Taiwan Centre for security studies (TCSS) held a comprehensive two-series International Webinar to strengthen global dialogue on climate change cooperation and climate finance on February 23 and February 25. The webinar titled “COP 26 Action and Beyond” was held in association with International Development Empowerment and Representation Agency (iDERA), Taiwan Climate Services Partnership (TCSP), and Chinese Culture University (CCU). The two- sessions critically and objectively assessed the positions and deliberations of each individual party at the Conference of the Parties (COP). 

While “Series I: COP 26 and the Way Forward” focused on reviewing COP 26 agreement and negotiations, National Strategies and Renewable Energy Development, “Series II: Towards COP 27–Small Island States Perspectives” flagged the perspectives of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in the run-up to the COP 27. The webinar attracted UN representatives, diplomats, academicians, policy analysts, and civil society groups. 

Ambassador of Saint-Lucia Edwin Laurent and Professor Fu-Kuo Liu

With the broader scope and diverse participation ranging from UN negotiators and policy researchers to civil society leaders, the webinar series aims to promote awareness and hopefully help policy negotiators and decision-makers better informed on the latest and cutting-edge research findings and philosophical thinking.

Ambassador of St. Lucia to Taiwan, Edwin Laurent, declared that the individual commitments are “not sufficient to eventually keep the rise of temperature below 1.5 degrees” and subsequent rapid climate change will have “disastrous consequences on every State and more especially on the SIDS.”  

Ambassador Carlos C. Fuller, Belize’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, reemphasized a major tenet of Glasgow’s judgment that “developed countries did not live up to their commitments to provide the 100 billion dollars per year for climate finance… promised back in 2009.” However, Ambassador Fuller also indicated positive measures as the parties agreed to invest and meet the target of the promised 100 billion dollars in 2023.

Carlos Fuller, Permanent Representative of Belize to the United Nations

The speakers also deliberated on the key political issue of the correlation between development finance and climate finance and agreed that both are closely related. However, the panel assumed the need for a “multi-dimensional vulnerability index that the international financial mechanisms will use to address our concerns so that we have access to fundings at reasonable risks.” The experts also reacted to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict as it exposed and threatened Europe’s energy supplies and its impact on the mitigation ambitions in 2022. 

Professor Fu-Kuo Liu confirmed that the combined efforts of like-minded partners spread across different continents are converging in March to establish a new cooperation platform on Climate Change and hold a signing ceremony in Taipei. Prof Liu also expressed his concerns over climate risks to Taiwan similar to that of the risks faced by SIDS and considers the webinar as an opportunity to “engage at the international level with different countries and experts to address climate risks.”