The Global Commission on Adaptation has released a report saying that countries must invest now in climate change protection or pay the consequences.
The report claimed that investing $1.8 trillion across five key areas over the next decade would not only help protect against global warming but could also result to over $7 trillion in net benefits. Former UN chief Ban Ki-moon, who chairs the commission, said "We are the last generation that can change the course of climate change, and we are the first generation that then has to live with the consequences." He added "Delay and pay, or plan and prosper."
The report also indicated that countries that invest in climate change protection, such as early warning systems, climate-resistant infrastructure, mangrove protection, better agriculture and improving fresh water resources, would reap benefits several times over. It also argued that if climate change is left unaddressed by 2030, over 100 million people in developing countries will fall below the poverty line. While mangroves serve as protection against storm surges and act as nurseries for commercial fisheries, at least a third of them have bee uprooted tourism or aquaculture.
Dominic Molloy, a co-author of the report and a researcher at the Global Centre for Adaptation, pointed out "We absolutely need to do both, reduce emissions and adapt. The purpose of this commission was to raise the visibility of adaptation, not shift away from mitigation." Bob Ward, policy director at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change, added "A failure to reduce emissions will mean mounting costs of adaptation."
Even Chinese environment minister Li Ganjie referred to adaptation practices as "an inherent requirement of China's sustainable development".
Ban calls on U.S. President Donald Trump to return to the 2015 Paris Agreement, which aims to limit global warming at "well below" 2C, and 1.5C if possible. Trump withdrew from the pact in 2017
The commission is co-chaired by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva.
