Oceans, our best bet vs climate change, finally at heart of COP31

A healthy ocean — which is finally getting its moment at this years United Nations climate talks - COP31

IYA GOZUM

MANILA, Philippines – World leaders, lobbyists, and advocates are coming together in Antalya, Turkey, for the annual United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference (COP31), which is being pegged as the “Blue COP” for its focus on the ocean.

Turkey is leading this year’s climate negotiations with Australia, pushing forward the concerns of Pacific Island countries vulnerable to rising seas, ocean warming, and acidification. Ocean action is also among Turkey’s top priorities, with the goal of “enhancing the climate resilience of coastal and marine ecosystems.”

A healthy ocean — which is finally getting its moment at this year's United Nations climate talks - COP31

Australian Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen, the president of negotiations at COP31, called the ocean “nature’s greatest climate regulator.”

“COP31 is an opportunity to show what cooperation can deliver at this crucial time for both our climate and global energy security,” Bowen said in a statement Thursday, November 5.

“It will be about unlocking finance and investment, cheaper energy for households, accelerating electrification, and boosting action on the ocean, nature’s greatest climate regulator.”

The UN, meanwhile, called the ocean “the world’s greatest ally against climate change,” a great stabilizer of the Earth’s climate, but one that is suffering damage because of hotter global temperatures.

This year’s COP will also focus heavily on electrification — a response to the fuel supply shock and global energy crisis that upended economies. UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell took note that the summit “takes place against the backdrop of an ongoing fossil fuel cost crisis, which has sent energy and transport costs spiraling.” – EIN News