The hosting of COP27 in the green city of Sharm El-Sheikh this year marks the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. In the thirty years since, the world has come a long way in the fight against climate change and its negative impacts on our planet; we are now able to better understand the science behind climate change, better assess its impacts, and better develop tools to address its causes and consequences.

We seek to accelerate global climate action through emissions reduction, scaled-up adaptation efforts and enhanced flows of appropriate finance. We recognize that ‘just transition’ remains a priority for developing countries worldwide.

CIMMYT at COP27

Scientists and researchers from CIMMYT will be participating in the following events:

• Director General Bram Govaerts discusses addressing food security through a gender-sensitive lens as part of a program of COP27 events by ICC.
• Accelerating Digital Climate Services for resilient food systems in the Global South explores the work of two CGIAR Initiatives: Securing the Food Systems of Asian Mega-Deltas (AMD) for Climate and Livelihood Resilience and Transforming Agrifood Systems in South Asia (TAFSSA) on November 17 between 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. In the Global South, farmers observing their traditional knowledge of weather patterns is becoming increasingly unreliable for making decisions due to climate change, and demand climate services can fill this vacuum. This event will showcase pioneering efforts to enable meteorological agencies in the Global South to produce accurate climate information, co-create digital climate services for agricultural systems (crops, aquaculture and livestock) and support sustainable and inclusive business models.
• Register for an online webinar on Fast Tracking Climate Solutions from Genebank Collections to learn about the CGIAR Initiative on Genebanks and the related AIM4C innovation sprint. Hear from Director General Bram Govaerts and principal scientist Sarah Hearne, both from CIMMYT, about work to strengthen the identification of high-value genetic diversity from germplasm collections and more efficiently leveraging this diversity to develop new varieties of climate-resilient crops. Learn more information in this media release.
• At the AIM4C reception, Taking Agricultural Innovation to the Next Level to Tackle the Climate Crisis, CIMMYT senior scientist Tek Sapkota will be speaking alongside the Minister of Climate Change and Environment from the United Arab Emirates, the Secretary of Agriculture for the United States, and the Regional Director for Central Asia, West Asia and North Africa at CGIAR.
• The Americas Pavilion, sharing our work across Latin America and the Caribbean.
• The Food and Agriculture Pavilion, hosted by CGIAR and open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Goals for COP27

There are four goals (objectives) for the event:

1. Mitigation. We must unite to limit global warming to well below 2c and work hard to keep the 1.5 c target alive. This requires bold and immediate actions and raising ambition from all parties in particular those who are in a position to do so and those who can and do lead by example.
2. Adaptation. Extreme weather events from heatwaves, floods, forest fires have become an everyday reality of our lives. World leaders, governments and state parties to the convention have reiterated their commitment at COP26 for enhanced global action on Adaptation in the COP26. The Global Goal on Adaptation was one of the significant outcomes of COP26. We must ensure that COP27 makes the crucially needed progress and urge all parties to demonstrate the necessary political will if we are to capture and assess our progress towards enhancing resilience and assist the most vulnerable communities.
3. Finance. In COP27 it is essential that we make significant progress on the crucial issue of climate finance while moving forward on all finance related items on the agenda. The importance of adequacy and predictability of climate finance is key to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement, to this end there is a need for enhanced transparency of finance flows and facilitated access to meet the needs of developing countries. Existing commitments and pledges, announced from Copenhagen and Cancun, through Paris and all the way to Glasgow, require follow up in order to provide clarity as to where we are and what more needs to be done. Progress on delivery of the annual USD 100 billion will build more trust between developed and developing countries, showing that actual commitments are being fulfilled.
4. Collaboration. Enhancing and facilitating agreement in the negotiations is of the utmost importance for the Presidency of COP27 to achieve tangible results in a balanced manner. The advancement of partnership and collaboration will help deliver our four goals and ensure the world is adopting more a resilient, and sustainable economic model where humans are at the center of climate talks. Governments, the private sector and civil society need to work, in tandem, to transform the way in which we interact with our planet. We must introduce new solutions and innovations that help alleviate the adverse impacts of climate change. We also need to replicate and rapidly upscale all other climate-friendly solutions towards implementation in developing countries.