Ruth Townend

While the government is responding to current, real security threats, such threats will only increase in tandem with climate impacts. 🌪️🔥🌊Cutting aid to fuel defence is like swapping a smaller, slightly leaky defence bucket for a larger one with a bigger hole. 🕳️(2/2)

🧵Cutting the #UKaidbudget is likely to harm the UK’s security in the face of cascading climate risks – chain reactions across borders which can feed hard security threats ⛓️. UK aid supports UK security by building resilience in vulnerable countries . (1/2)

Episode 48: The 2025 international climate agenda Podcast Episode · The Climate Briefing · 22/01/2025 · 41m

What now for climate action😟? Who better to discuss on the pod 🎙️ than former US Climate Envoy 🗽@tdsdc.bsky.social & @chathamhouse.bsky.social ESC Director Ana Yang? We talk turbulent times, US withdrawral from Paris & Brazil's prospects as COP30 & BRICS president. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/e...

Episode 47: What happened at COP29? Chaos, climate finance and coughs Podcast Episode · The Climate Briefing · 10/12/2024 · 37m

🚨🎙️NEW PODCAST ALERT!🎙️🚨

The @chathamhouse.bsky.social Environment team discuss the #COP29 outcome and implications for climate finance, climate plans, and multilateralism. Join me, @rking.uk, @chrisaylett.bsky.social and Ben Horton to see how the dust settled.

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/e...

Such a pleasure to speak with delegates at the
@mybisa.bsky.social #climatesim 2025 this morning.
Loving the energy & ingenuity in finding solutions, and shout out to Russia's delegation lead - your method acting is 👨‍🍳👌. I had to miss lunch but hope you stayed in character for the sandwiches.

Not far enough! Keep going, Australia’s wrens, with your brilliant feathers and even more brilliant names. ‘Splendid fairywren’. ‘Superb fairywren.’ Yes you are, lads, carry on!

😂

COP28 in Dubai sets direction in response to the global stocktake, COP29 in Baku is meant to put in place the finance for parties to deliver strong new climate plans at COP30 in Belem, Brazil.

How does #COP29 fit into the wider picture of climate action?

COPs 28-30 are meant to 'reset' global climate action after a poor report on Paris progress in the 'global stocktake'. If one link in the chain is weak or fails, this reset is at risk.

From www.chathamhouse.org/2024/10/azer...

Has COP29 made a difference on climate change? Podcast Episode · Independent Thinking · 22/11/2024 · 36m

We discuss the issues and what’s at stake on this week’s
@chathamhouse.bsky.social Independent Thinking podcast with Bronwen Maddox, former BBC journalist Roger Harrabin and Maria Netto, executive director of the Institute for Climate and Society in Brazil.

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/h...

Really clear explanation of the crucial role of #COP29 in the chain of multilateral climate action from Hindustan Times:

“Without adequate finance commitments in Baku, countries may be unable or unwilling to enhance their climate pledges next year in Belem.”

www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/c...

Independent Thinking: Has COP29 made a difference on climate change? Roger Harrabin, Maria Netto and Ruth Townend join the podcast to discuss the COP29 summit in Azerbaijan and how Donald Trump’s re-election could change global climate action.

Podcast🎙️| Has COP29 made a difference on climate change?

Roger Harrabin, Maria Netto and @ruthtownend.bsky.social join the podcast this week to discuss COP29 and how Donald Trump’s re-election could impact climate action.

Apple: apple.co/3AGBJdW
Spotify: spoti.fi/3CGFSPs

NEW TEXTS DROPPED AT #COP29

* NCQG: Draft finance target of $250bn
* UAE dialogue: clear ref to GST para 28
* UAE dialogue: Options on taking GST fwd
* MWP: GST remains absent

www.carbonbrief.org/...
1/3

Waiting for new texts at #COP29 and asking myself 'why is this so hard?' For a lot of reasons, but boiled down to one word: incentives. This finance COP and its #NCQG on climate finance could still change the game, by changing the stakes for parties in the negotiations. COP, heal thyself.

Episode 45: Climate finance 2 - Private finance, polycrisis and positive shocks Podcast Episode · The Climate Briefing · 07/08/2024 · 40m

Listen to the excellent Professor Patrick Bolton, E-axes report co-author, talk to me and climate and nature finance inspiration Dr Nicola Ranger on the Climate Briefing podcast 🎙️ here: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/e...

Ends.

Climate finance is not charity and the 'donor' base is a misnomer. By supporting countries which lack the means for ambitious mitigation and adaptation action, developing countries are investing in their own economies, their own resilience, the stability of the climate in which they operate.

(2/3)

COP29: The Economic Case for a New Common Quantified Goal of Climate Finance (NCQG) at Scale - E-Axes Forum Patrick Bolton (Imperial College London) and Alissa M. Kleinnijenhuis (Cornell University, Imperial College London) assess the importance of New Common Quantified Goal (NCQG) in order to meet the Pari...

All eyes are on the #NCQG climate finance prize at #COP29. New research from e-axes shows a $2.8 tn climate mitigation investment by developed countries would delivers them a net economic benefit of $5.1–$40 tn over 2025–2035, an economic return of 180%–1457% e-axes.org/research/cop...

🧵 (1/3)

I was pleased to be guesting on this episode and opining down the line from #COP29 in Baku

Looking for a weekend #podcast while you fold relentless washing, tidy the kitchen, or pick up tiny, brutally sharp pieces of Lego out of the rug before stepping on them YET AGAIN?

@chathamhouse.bsky.social's Climate Briefing from has you.

Listen on #COP29, vibes & Azerbaijan as climate leader.

Agreement between parties on how to realize the benefits & limit the potential damage from the system of rotating COP presidencies could help shore up future global climate cooperation.

With analysis from @arzugeybulla.bsky.social
@laurencebroers.bsky.social

End.

In it, we recommend that Parties to the UNFCCC UN should mandate the secretariat to develop best practice and guardrails for the COP presidency. Faith and trust in the UNFCCC, the Paris Agreement and the COP process are the bedrock of multilateral climate ambition.

(2/3)

Azerbaijan’s climate leadership challenge What’s at stake at COP29 and beyond

In response to the @clubofrome.bsky.social letter today, the world must work with the #ParisAgreement process compromised as it certainly is & broken as it may be. There is no time to begin again.

Read our report on Azerbaijan's #COP29 presidency here chathamhouse.org/2024/10/azer...

(1/3)

Episode 46: COP29, Azerbaijan's climate leadership, and prospects for climate action Podcast Episode · The Climate Briefing · 14/11/2024 · 43m

* 🎙 NEW PODCAST ALERT 🎙 *
As #COP29 kicks off in Baku, the team talk Azerbaijan's climate leadership, COP vibes, prospects, and why working on climate change makes you a terrible dinner party guest.

With dispatches from @chathamhouse.bsky.social in Baku: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/e...

YouTube video by Chatham House Explained: What is COP29?

What is all this #COP29 Climate Conference malarkey anyway? This @chathamhouse.bsky.social video explainer covers what the COP is, who goes, what they hope to achieve, and prospects for this year's summit. Sort your NDCs from your NCQG from your UNFCCC here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZe2...

Thanks Martin, glad it's useful to you.

Yesterday, President Ilham Aliyev again called oil and gas 'a gift from god' 'just like the sun, wind and minerals'. Unlike the sun and wind, fossil fuels are destabilising our planet and threatening its liveability. Read our report on Azerbaijan's climate leadership at #COP29 and beyond.

What is COP29 and why is it important? The COP29 summit will see negotiators try to agree how to finance the climate action the world urgently needs.

At COP29, avoiding backsliding on existing commitments will be vital, and progress on new measures will be difficult to achieve, writes @ruthtownend.bsky.social.

Thanks to @timgbenton for analysis, and @CH_Environment
for contributions and insights. @chathamhouse.bsky.social

Under Trump, we can expect a more tense, protectionist, populist and polarised world. The burden on global environmental action will be significant. COP29 is now more important than ever, as countries must rally against a vortex of likely US climate antagonism and inertia. 11/11

Trump’s significant admiration of “hard man” authoritarian leaders, and their approval of his disruptive effects, which can benefit their strategic ends, may support increasing dominance of populist and right-wing politics that neglect environmental action and downplay risks. 10/11

Trump plans heavy military investment, at a time when climate impacts are already feeding instability. As global tensions increase, countries may be driven to focus on security, defence, energy, food and critical supply-chains, at the expense of decarbonisation targets. 9/11