Upcoming event: Is COP26 enough? Peace, Militarism, and the Climate Crisis: a missing piece

A recording of this event is now available in our Youtube channel.

The Northern Friends Peace Board, the Quaker Council for European Affairs and Quaker Peace and Social Witness are jointly organising a virtual interactive event: “Is COP26 enough? Peace, Militarism, and the Climate Crisis: a missing piece”

When:   Saturday 29 January 2022

Speakers:

  • Rep. Sheila Babauta, 22nd CNMI Legislature – Natural Resources Committee Chairwoman, Northern Mariana Islands. 
  • Stuart Parkinson, Executive Director of Scientists for Global Responsibility.

Time:    10 a.m. – 11:30 London time / 11:00 – 12:30 Brussels time / 12:00 – 13:30 Johannesburg time

To register click  on this link.

Objectives of this event:

  • Draw out the outcomes from COP26 in relation to Climate and Peace.
  • Hear from communities affected by militarism, the climate crisis and its interplay.  
  • Offer approaches to bridge the gap between policy and actions in communities,
  • Reflect together, support and promote actions that will make a difference in challenging militarism and its climate impacts. 

Questions to be explored: 

  • Why do the climate impacts of the military matter in international climate negotiations?
  • What are the challenges in evaluating, measuring, and quantifying the climate impacts of the military industry?
  • How do we make governments and actors that profit from warfare more accountable for the human and climate impacts of war?
  • How can the lived experience of people most affected by the climate crisis and militarist policies be made relevant to the COP27 agenda? 
  • What kind of action can people take in their daily lives to challenge increasing militarisation of conflict as well as many aspects of civilian life in their own countries and abroad?
  • How do we raise awareness of the need to transform hard security narratives into more community-centred approaches to security?
  • Why is it important to take a justice-based approach to climate action? 
  • How do we reassure people of diverse backgrounds that they still have agency over large and powerful interests groups who benefit from maintaining the status quo of militarised responses?

Brief description and context: 

There is growing consensus that we are rapidly moving towards climate and ecosystem collapse and that urgent action is needed. COP26 saw widespread civil society mobilisations, a resulting pressure triggered heightened ambitions at the negotiating table. Despite some welcome progress on methane, deforestation and the Paris rulebook, commitments in the Glasgow declaration remain insufficient, with warming on track to exceed the 1.5 limit. Greenhouse gas emissions by the military sector continue to be excluded from climate neutrality pledges and military emission did not make it to the COP26 agenda. The UNFCCC framework compels some states to report their emissions on a yearly basis, yet reporting on military emissions is often incomplete if reported at all, and military expenditure is increasing year on year. The voices of those most affected by the climate crisis continue to be notably excluded from the negotiating table, and COP26 was no exception. Communities that are affected by militarist policies, also come from territories that are living the impacts of the climate crisis. Any credible climate negotiation should amplify the voices of those who, having contributed the least to the climate crisis, are shouldering the costs. 

This event will provide a space to share ways forward to raise momentum, working to ensure adequate, transparent reporting of military emissions at climate summits. This includes opposing hard security approaches and forefronting human security, which prioritises human rights safeguards, prevention work and well-equipped public services over militarised responses. Public funds dedicated to the military could be better used when redirected to support climate action: including loss and damage, adaptation and mitigation. We hope to inspire the audience to challenge manifestations of militarism in their daily lives, as well as organise to build momentum and ensure that military emissions make it to the COP27 agenda.