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Barack Obama Returns to Climate Talks With a Call for ‘Ongoing Activism’ Barack Obama Returns to Climate Talks With a Call for ‘Ongoing Activism’
(about 2 hours later)
GLASGOW — Former President Barack Obama, who helped to seal the Paris climate agreement six years ago, appeared at the climate summit here to assure a global audience that despite American political divisions, officials remain committed to the cause. GLASGOW — Former President Barack Obama, who helped to seal the Paris climate agreement six years ago, returned to an international climate summit here to rally nations to heal the planet, acknowledging the enormous complexity of the crisis but arguing that humanity has the capacity to create a safer, healthier world.
“Politics in the United States are not always easy,” he said. “My successor maybe wasn’t as interested in climate science as I was, it turns out.” “To be honest with ourselves, yes, this is going to be really hard,” said Mr. Obama, who was welcomed with sustained applause by delegates from nearly 200 nations. “The thing we have going for us, is that humanity has done hard things before. I believe we can do hard things again. Yes, the process will be messy. I guarantee you every victory will be incomplete. Sometimes we will be forced to settle for imperfect compromises. But at least they advance the ball down the field. If we work hard enough, for long enough, those partial victories add up.”
His successor, Donald J. Trump, pulled the United States out of the Paris accord and unwound more than 100 of Mr. Obama’s environmental regulations. The Obama administration’s original targets to reduce its emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases remain unmet, and it’s unclear exactly how the new targets set by President Biden will be fulfilled, given the obstacles he has faced in Congress. Mr. Obama noted that the Paris agreement, signed by 197 countries in 2015, created a framework for climate action, but nations, including the United States, failed to follow through on their commitments to keep global warming within relatively safe margins.
“It’s one of the things about democracy,” said Mr. Obama, who took no questions from reporters. “You don’t always get your way.” “Important work was done there, and important work is being done here,” he said. “That is the good news. Now, for the bad news. We are nowhere near where we need to be.”
Mr. Obama’s appearance at the summit was greeted with enormous enthusiasm, with a large crowd of delegates crowding around to catch a glimpse of the former president and loudly cheering as he walked into the hall. The former president spoke directly to young people, who have filled the streets of Glasgow and elsewhere to demand more ambitious action on climate change from world leaders. He urged them to keep up the pressure on governments, institutions and businesses to cut the emissions that are heating the Earth.
Mr. Obama noted that the United States, the nation that has historically pumped the most greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, was a target of critics at the summit. But he suggested that criticism aimed at members of the American delegation was misplaced. “The cold hard fact is, we will not have more ambitious climate plans coming out of governments unless governments feel some pressure from young people,” he said.
“Don’t think you can ignore politics,” Mr. Obama said. “You don’t have to be happy about it. But you can’t ignore it. You can’t be too pure for it. It’s part of the process that’s going to deliver all of us.”
“The most important energy in this movement is coming from young people,” he said, to applause from the audience. “And the reason is simple. They have more at stake in this than anybody else.”
He said he understood the psychic weight carried by younger generations, and the anger that many feel about inheriting a world where storms have become more ferocious and frequent, heat waves more deadly, where species are disappearing and the future feels frightening.
“I’m the father of two daughters in their early 20s,” he said. “It’s not always easy being young today. For most of your lives, if you’re in that generation, you’ve been bombarded about what the future will look like if we don’t do anything about climate change. And you’ve grown up watching the adults either act like the problem doesn’t exist or don’t do anything about it. It’s a real source of anxiety and some of you no doubt wonder if you’ll be safe.”
And he acknowledged that he, too, sometimes felt overwhelmed by the crisis.
“There are times where I feel discouraged, there are times when the future seems somewhat bleak, there are times when I am doubtful that humanity can get its act together before it’s too late,” he said. “Images of dystopia creep into my dreams.”
But, he cautioned, “cynicism is the recourse of cowards. We can’t afford hopelessness.”
“This is not just about raw numbers,” he said. “This is not just about science. This is about politics, culture, morality. It’s about the human dynamic. How do we work together to get a big thing done. It’s about participation. It’s about power.”
He made a glancing reference to his successor, Donald J. Trump, who pulled the United States out of the Paris accord and unwound more than 100 of Mr. Obama’s environmental regulations, calling the period “four years of active hostility toward climate science, coming from very top of our government.”
Mr. Obama’s appearance at the summit was greeted with enormous enthusiasm, with a large crowd of delegates crowding around to catch a glimpse of the former president, phones held aloft to catch a quick photo of him, as he walked into the hall. He received a standing ovation after his address.
His agenda was carefully curated. In addition to a general address, he spoke to leaders of several island countries already feeling the acute impacts of climate change, emphasizing the need for money to help vulnerable countries adapt to a hotter planet and describing himself as “an island kid.”
He also attended a closed-door session with a bloc of countries that call themselves the High Ambition Coalition. He was scheduled to end his day with a round table with a group of youth advocates.
During the round table with the island nations, Mr. Obama noted that the United States, the nation that has historically pumped the most greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, was a target of critics at the summit. But he suggested that criticism aimed at members of the American delegation was misplaced.
“Sometimes it will feel like the U.S. and some of the other countries are not always moving as fast or following through with commitments as much as we like,” he said. “It’s not for lack of trying by the people who are working here.”“Sometimes it will feel like the U.S. and some of the other countries are not always moving as fast or following through with commitments as much as we like,” he said. “It’s not for lack of trying by the people who are working here.”
Mr. Obama’s agenda was carefully curated. He spoke first to leaders of several island countries already feeling the acute impacts of climate change, emphasizing the need for money to help vulnerable countries adapt to a hotter planet and describing himself as “an island kid.” Before he began speaking Monday, pushback came from some young activists, who criticized the United States for not paying its fair share of financial aid to help poor countries address climate change.
He was scheduled to attend a closed-door session with a bloc of countries that call themselves the High Ambition Coalition. His day at the two-week summit, which is the 26th session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations climate change convention, or COP26, ends with a round table with a group of youth advocating for climate action.
But even before he began speaking, pushback came from some young activists, who criticized the United States for not paying its fair share of financial aid to help poor countries address climate change.
The activist Vanessa Nakate wrote on Twitter that she was 13 when the former president promised that the countries of the global north would shore up $100 billion in climate financing a year by 2020. That money hasn’t yet materialized. “The US has broken that promise, it will cost lives in Africa,” she tweeted. “You want to meet #COP26 youth. We want action.”The activist Vanessa Nakate wrote on Twitter that she was 13 when the former president promised that the countries of the global north would shore up $100 billion in climate financing a year by 2020. That money hasn’t yet materialized. “The US has broken that promise, it will cost lives in Africa,” she tweeted. “You want to meet #COP26 youth. We want action.”
It is a current running through the proceedings: young activists angry at the older presidents and prime ministers of big polluter nations for failing to act swiftly to reduce emissions and aid those most vulnerable to climate disasters.
Mr. Obama said Monday that rich industrialized countries like the United States had “an added burden” to aid nations at the front lines of climate impacts. The United States has been under pressure to increase funding to help countries adapt to climate risks already upon them. The Biden administration has pledged $11.4 billion in climate aid over the next few years, with roughly a fourth of that for adaptation, though that money still requires congressional approval.Mr. Obama said Monday that rich industrialized countries like the United States had “an added burden” to aid nations at the front lines of climate impacts. The United States has been under pressure to increase funding to help countries adapt to climate risks already upon them. The Biden administration has pledged $11.4 billion in climate aid over the next few years, with roughly a fourth of that for adaptation, though that money still requires congressional approval.
“Those of us who live in big wealthy nations, those of us who helped to precipitate the problem, we have an added burden to make sure that we are working with and helping and assisting those who are less responsible and less able and more vulnerable to this oncoming crisis,” Mr. Obama said.“Those of us who live in big wealthy nations, those of us who helped to precipitate the problem, we have an added burden to make sure that we are working with and helping and assisting those who are less responsible and less able and more vulnerable to this oncoming crisis,” Mr. Obama said.
For decades, many of the most vulnerable countries have pressed for reparations from rich industrialized countries, as part of what they call a loss and damage fund. The United States and other rich countries have long been reluctant to agree to anything that opens them up to liability.For decades, many of the most vulnerable countries have pressed for reparations from rich industrialized countries, as part of what they call a loss and damage fund. The United States and other rich countries have long been reluctant to agree to anything that opens them up to liability.
The Marshall Islands said it would need “tens of billions” of dollars for adaptation, including to elevate its territory and move its people away from harm’s way.The Marshall Islands said it would need “tens of billions” of dollars for adaptation, including to elevate its territory and move its people away from harm’s way.
Mr. Obama offered a nod to the fury of the young, at one point crediting them for their ability to “speak truth to power.”Mr. Obama offered a nod to the fury of the young, at one point crediting them for their ability to “speak truth to power.”
“Us old folks, the gray-haired types or no-haired types sometimes I think make excuses,” he said.“Us old folks, the gray-haired types or no-haired types sometimes I think make excuses,” he said.
He took pains to note that the pledges made so far could significantly slow down temperature rise, if they are kept.He took pains to note that the pledges made so far could significantly slow down temperature rise, if they are kept.
“That’s real progress, not enough, but it moves us in right direction,” he said. “That requires ongoing activism in between.”“That’s real progress, not enough, but it moves us in right direction,” he said. “That requires ongoing activism in between.”