COP28 President Discusses Pioneering Role of Religious Leaders in Advancing Climate Progress with Pope Francis
His Excellency Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and President of the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28), affirmed that in line with the UAE's leadership vision, the COP28 Presidency is working towards inclusivity and mobilizing the efforts of all parties, stakeholders, and various segments of society, including religious representatives. This aims to foster harmony and solidarity to achieve the highest global climate ambitions while concurrently advancing sustainable economic and social development.
This was emphasized during His Excellency's meeting with Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church in Rome. He conveyed the greetings of the UAE's leadership and their desire to strengthen and expand cooperation between the two friendly nations. His Excellency also extended an invitation for Pope Francis to participate in the Global Climate Action Summit, which will be attended by world leaders and organized by COP28 on December 1st and 2nd in Expo City Dubai. Their discussion also touched upon the prominent role of religious leaders in achieving the desired climate progress at COP28.
The conversation also highlighted the crucial importance of the global stocktake results in assessing progress towards the goals of the Paris Agreement. It underscored the urgent need for a detailed action plan that provides a decisive and comprehensive response to these results in all the key pillars of the Paris Agreement.
Dr. Sultan Al Jaber mentioned the call he issued to the international community to join hands and unify efforts this year, recognizing the urgent need for action to address the global stocktake results. He stressed that the world critically requires the active participation of every individual to tackle the current climate situation.
He added, "I have full confidence in our ability to unite our efforts and take the necessary actions to seize the last opportunity to raise the ambition level, get back on track, and rekindle the hope that the current and future generations need."
His Excellency also discussed with Pope Francis the means to integrate the concepts of the Vatican's message "Laudato Si" - Praise Be to You - into the COP28 Declaration on Religions, which is expected to be signed after the World Religious Leaders Summit. The Vatican, under Pope Francis's guidance, is making significant efforts to support climate action and call for heightened ambitions in combating the effects of climate change and promoting social justice principles.
He noted the importance of Pope Francis's update of the papal document "Laudato Si - Care for Our Common Home," published in 2015, on environmental issues to align it with current data. The COP28 Presidency aims to strengthen the participation and contribution of religious leaders and call upon them to work towards addressing climate impacts. His Excellency emphasized that Pope Francis's call to action and realization will inspire millions and contribute to raising ambition levels during COP28 to address the climate action urgency.
The COP28 Presidency is collaborating with the Catholic Church, the Muslim Council of Elders, and the United Nations Environment Programme to ensure that everyone is included in the COP system, including religious organizations in climate discussions. Ensuring inclusivity is a fundamental pillar of the COP28 Presidency's action plan, aimed at providing a platform for listening and communication with everyone, including religious organizations, especially those working to assist the communities most affected by the consequences of climate change.
It's worth noting that the COP28 Presidency has prepared to launch a series of interfaith initiatives leading up to and during the conference. This is intended to strengthen the role of religious communities within the framework of the Conference of the Parties' work. One of the major initiatives is the World Religious Leaders Summit, scheduled for November 6th under the theme "Forum of Conscience," and on November 7th in Abu Dhabi. The summit will bring together hundreds of religious leaders, scholars, and scientists to collaborate and offer a collective response to the global stocktake results and sign a declaration on climate action progress at COP28. It will also discuss the moral responsibilities of religious leaders in addressing the climate change crisis and make an appeal to raise ambition levels at COP28 and beyond.
The summit will also include an assessment of the actions taken by interfaith leaders between COP21 in Paris and COP28, highlighting ways to address gaps in the priority areas of the COP28 Presidency's action plan. This is aimed at reinvigorating climate action efforts. The Presidency of the Conference will also co-host the first interfaith pavilion during the Conference of the Parties, conducting discussion sessions with numerous religious figures, scholars, and political leaders. These sessions will contribute to strengthening intergenerational dialogue, involving young religious leaders and indigenous people's representatives.
COP28 represents an opportunity to accelerate the achievement of an orderly, responsible, fair, and logical transition in the energy sector by building a clean energy system for the future, while also reducing emissions from the current energy system to maintain the possibility of achieving the goal of limiting global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The COP28 Presidency, in its various contributions, underscores the need to complete this transition to ensure energy security for all, especially for the 800 million people worldwide who currently lack access to energy. The world must increase investments in clean energy sources, triple the capacity of renewable energy production, and achieve zero methane emissions by 2030.
Various religious activities and interfaith dialogues, along with the participation of religious organizations, will contribute to advocating for an ambitious and fair climate agreement at COP28. They will also support the procedures and pathways the COP28 Presidency is working on to find concrete and effective solutions to address the gaps in the 2030 goals and provide a decisive and comprehensive response to the global stocktake. The plan of action for the conference aims to reach an ambitious mitigation work program, adopt a decisive framework for the global adaptation goal, activate the Loss and Damage Fund and its financing modalities, and agree on a fair and equitable methodology for means of implementation.