Nature, November 2023
Last year, countries agreed to establish a fund to address climate-related ‘loss and damage’ at the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. One year on, recommendations on the basics of the fund’s structure, governance and funding are expected to be set out at COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, at the end of this month.
It won’t be a full picture — negotiations are continuing and it will take time for the details to be worked out. Nonetheless, we argue, it’s crucial that aspects of the fund start to operate in 2024, including the release of small grants to support the most vulnerable people experiencing climate impacts.
Lessons must be drawn quickly from other areas of climate finance, too, notably the Green Climate Fund (GCF) — the world’s largest dedicated resource for supporting climate mitigation and adaptation in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). By 1 November, the GCF had allocated US$13.5 billion to 243 projects since it was established in 2010.
