Press |

December 15, 2019

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15 December 2019 [Madrid] – At the conclusion of COP25, CARE expresses its deep concern over the large disconnect between the reality of the climate emergency and people’s demands for climate justice, and the bare minimum that governments pieced together at negotiations. Delivering enhanced national climate plans that close the gap in emissions to achieve the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C limit by Spring 2020 is now the challenging task faced by countries as they return home to a growing public outraged by the climate emergency.

The outcomes of COP25 are completely disconnected from the demands of people across the world to address the climate emergency. Governments from big polluting countries, like the USA, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Australia, continue down a path of dangerous inaction and are undermining international efforts to prevent the increasingly imminent climate breakdown. Nations like the EU, China, and India must now seize the opportunity to take leadership to ensure all countries cooperate and deliver improved national climate plans. Lack thereof would risk global surrender to the climate crisis and failure to achieve the Paris Agreement goals.

Inge Vianen, Global Leader of CARE International’s Climate Change and Resilience Platform

“We have witnessed two weeks of negotiations in which developed countries, especially the United States, have largely refused to heed the most vulnerable countries’ reasonable demands for support when they are hit by climate disasters. It is not the house of the rich countries that is burning, it is the land of the poor – but it is the rich countries’ emissions that have set the fire. With the disappointing loss and damage outcome from COP25, including a vague mandate for the Green Climate Fund, the fight for new and additional resources and climate justice will continue.”

Sven Harmeling, CARE’s Global Advocacy Lead on Climate Change and Resilience

We welcome the adoption of the gender action plan at COP25 which will increase women’s participation in international climate talks and national climate action, and help grassroots women’s organizations access climate finance. However, the resistance from some countries over the past two weeks in the gender plan negotiations clearly demonstrates that hard-won gains of human rights and gender justice continue to be threatened.

Vitumbiko Chinoko, Partnerships and Advocacy Coordinator, CARE Southern Africa