SPECIAL REPORT: LOOKING AHEAD TO COP26: CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE COMMONWEALTH
WORKING WITH COMMONWEALTH COUNTRIES TO ADDRESS A COMMON THREAT The work of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in addressing climate change and renewable energy is vital in many countries of the Commonwealth. Global temperatures are rising. As I write this, extreme weather patterns sweep their way across all corners of our world. Floods took a heavy toll on human life and resources in India and Bangladesh. Hurricane Ida is leaving a trial of devastation across the eastern United States of America. Meanwhile on the west coast of the USA thousands are being evacuated due to the type of wildfires that have also gripped southern Europe and prompted Greece into the creation of a climate crisis ministry. Climate change has become a very real and painful reality for many people and communities today. This is especially true for a number of Commonwealth countries, particularly island states in regions such as the Pacific and Indian Oceans and in the Caribbean which are among the most vulnerable to the impacts of rising sea levels. With July 2021 recorded as the hottest month in history, there can be no hiding from the reality that our current trajectory is towards climate catastrophe. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s 6th Assessment Report confirmed as much recently, reporting that unless the world eliminates emissions by mid-century, the consequences of climate change could take hundreds or even thousands of years to reverse. This was perhaps the ‘red alarm’ needed to encourage much greater action. The positive news is that the technologies we need to achieve a net zero energy system by the middle of the century largely exist and are increasingly cost-competitive for all countries, not just a few. The World Energy Transitions Outlook (WETO)1, the International Renewable Energy Agency’s (IRENA) roadmap to a net zero energy system, highlights that through the use of existing emission-reduction solutions such as modern sources of renewable energy, together
Francesco La Camera
with rapidly emerging technologies such as green hydrogen, we can achieve a net zero future in a way that is economically attractive. Our scenario envisages a blend of technologies including decarbonised power systems dominated by renewables; increasingly efficient energy production to ensure economic growth; increased use of electricity in buildings, industry and transport to support decarbonisation; expanded production and use of green hydrogen, synthetic fuels and feedstocks; and targeted use of sustainably sourced biomass. These are not distant aspirations but achievable aims that we stand on the cusp of fully embracing. In that respect, 2021 may serve as a turning point. Unprecedented Momentum Once seen as an ambitious and overly progressive view of a renewable energy future, IRENA’s energy transition perspective has quickly become the mainstream vision for the road ahead. Today, our scenario is widely accepted as an achievable and cost-effective pathway to a net zero future based largely on the technologies available to us today. This is reflected in the fact that a growing number of countries have made commitments to net zero strategies over the last 12 months, creating unprecedented political momentum for a transformative change. Today, over 170 countries have renewables targets - many of them in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). Major economies accounting for 70% of global CO2 emissions have set targets for carbon neutrality by 2050 and markets are already pricing in energy transitions. Steep cost declines across almost all renewable technologies have made renewable power the most cost-effective source of new generating capacity in many countries today. In 2020, renewable
is the Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) since 2019 and brings more than thirty years of experience in the fields of climate, sustainability and international cooperation. Previously, he served as Director-General of Sustainable Development, Environmental Damage, EU and International Affairs at the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land & Sea where he developed cooperation and partnership agreements with a wide range of countries, particularly Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
244 | The Parliamentarian | 2021: Issue Three | 100 years of publishing
