Climate Change

The week before the Stern Report was published, I spent five days in Kenya, seeing not only how climate change is already with us, but how it is having the most profound effect on some of the world's poorest people. We visited the town of Kapenguria in the Kachileba constituency, where 82% of the population is classified as living below the Kenyan poverty line. Dire problems of aridity and drought cause major problems for the farmers who make up the majority of the poor.

Most of the people in the area are pastoralists, and there have always been occasional inter-tribal skirmishes. But climate change has brought drought, farming has become much harder and conflicts over scarce water and animals are on the increase. The heaviest price, as always, is borne by women and children. Cattle has always been used as a dowry. But where only a few years ago girls were marrying aged 16, fathers desperate for whatever animals they can keep to survive, now send their daughters to marry as young as 11. Girls are forced out of school and another Millennium Development Goal  - to get more girls into education - is falling by the wayside.

What I learned in Kenya is that the poorest are paying the highest price for climate change and that all the positive developments are put at risk by our inaction. What better venue, then, for the recent world Climate Change Conference than Nairobi, the Kenyan capital? The conference agreed to negotiations on carbon emissions after the Kyoto protocol expires in 2012, a review of Kyoto and some financial and technical support for developing countries to deal with the effects of climate change. But as David Miliband put it; "the world community can make progress when it puts its mind to it, but… my goodness we really need to up the momentum".  

After my trip, I know for certain that poverty will never be history unless we address climate change.

Linda

In March 2007, government ministers agreed new targets as a framework for the next steps to reduce carbon emissions and combat climate change. Some of the resulting policy issues currently being debated in the Parliament are outlined below. What ministers agreed: A target of at least a 20% cut in carbon emissions from 1990 levels by 2020 (30% if other countries agree) By 2020, at least 20% of the EU's energy needs should be met from renewable sources   More research into carbon capture technology Energy efficiency targets And - in the announcement that made the headlines - announced that energy efficient light bulbs should replace conventional bulbs by 2010 17th December 2008: The European Parliament has voted to back a package of measures to deliver on targets to combat climate change, and to put the EU in a position to lead the world into international negotiations in Copenhagen in 2009. For details of the measures agreed by MEPs, please click here (links to the European Parliament website).