December 2015 saw the close of international climate negotiations (COP21) in Paris, France, which gave rise to a global climate agreement – the Paris Agreement – the first since the Kyoto Protocol which was adopted almost 20 years ago.
Whilst the Paris Agreement may lack the ambition that many participating parties had initially hoped for; it nonetheless provides guidelines towards significant global carbon emission reductions – essential to, curb further global average temperature increase, to within habitable limits.
The Agreement provides a framework to which each country will need to adapt their national actions in order to achieve the mentioned targets. The next step is for participating national Governments to show how they will put the Paris Agreement into action in their respective countries.
At the national level the responsibility of actualizing the targets of the Paris Agreement, should not fall on, in South Africa’s case, the Department of Environmental Affairs, alone. The environment and the changes in South Africa’s climate play a role in every governmental department and every facet of our day-to-day lives – no governmental department and nobody is immune to the impacts of climate change.
Beyond the role of governmental departments to affect cross-societal change through implementable policies in how we address the impacts of climate change in South Africa, we must not neglect the inherent ability of ordinary citizens, like you and I, to fundamentally shift, how we, as a country, respond proactively to climate change.
The morning after COP21 closed, there were reports of decreases in the share prices of fossil fuel companies listed on stock exchanges – this was a symbol of the seriousness COP21 had on investment portfolios. There were also reports of private investments making significant pro-renewable energy-shifts. The change of the tide globally is well and truly happening. (http://bit.ly/2a1BcFz)
Whilst this global shift is taking place, it is disappointing to note that Eskom recently announced that it would no longer be signing new agreements with independent power producers from renewable energy sources. Eskom’s CEO Brian Molefe, in his opinion, South Africa’s base load should be met by carbon-intensive coal and nuclear.
On the 22nd of April, the Paris Agreement was signed by heads of states, including South Africa. The endorsement now calls for action. It is time also for South Africa for all levels of government to take up the endorsed targets and make it relevant to local circumstances – creating opportunities to roll out local climate resilience building measures, as well in aiding the decrease in local carbon emissions. What is our Government’s response, in light of the recent Eskom announcement, how will it meet the carbon reduction targets?
With the local government elections literally around the corner, it is important for one to ask questions about how any political party intends on addressing the existing, as well as, potential impacts of climate change, and also their outlook on energy and specifically electricity generation in the country.
We need to remember that when voting for any party, we are electing our representatives to the state – representatives that should and need to understand our changing needs in the face of a changing climate. The better informed we are about it, the better prepared we are in engaging these challenges. You can begin by asking – what is the political party’s climate change/green manifesto? Does the political party have an actionable plan to address the impacts of climate change in your municipality? What position does the party have, when it comes to renewable energies? Our preparedness means that we can hold our local governments to a higher degree of accountability and move towards a more sustainable future.
Your vote. Our future.
Neoka Naidoo, holds a Fellowship from the Environmental Entrepreneur Support Initiative of the Global Risk Governance Programme, Law Faculty, University of Cape Town. As an ESSI Fellow Neoka contributes to the work of Project 90 by 2030 as a Policy Communicator.
