Opportunity Green’s Post

I've worked on shipping and aviation decarbonisation for a long time and I can now definitively say it looks like shipping are winning. Whilst there is still a long way to go in that industry, the attitude of its leaders, right up to the International Maritime Organization Secretary General, Arsenio Dominguez is completely different from that of the International Civil Aviation Organization. My blog below sets out that change. It was captured perfectly by a panel moderated by Pilita Clark of the Financial Times where Marie Owens Thomsen from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) made clear that aviation was not willing to contribute to climate finance. An extraordinary stance for an industry contributing about 4-6% of climate warming every year and with emissions that continue to grow. With the climate finance gap that is clear post-COP, the aviation sector will have to do better. And I'm excited to see what the shipping sector agrees in terms of it's contribution next year. #climatefinance #COP29 #aviationdecarbonisation #shippingdecarbonisation

IATA took part in discussions at #COP29 with International Monetary Fund A.P. Moller - Maersk European Climate Foundation Financial Times on global mitigation policies for aviation and shipping, highlighting the crucial role of SAF & CORSIA. https://lnkd.in/e-CWK7Qr

COP29: The UK is wrong to exclude shipping and aviation emissions from its NDC Keir Starmer used his stage time at COP29 on Tuesday to announce the UK as the third country to launch its nationally determined contribution ahead of the February 2025 deadline. The UK’s plan to meet Paris climate targets aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81 per cent relative to 1990s levels. The ambition is welcome but, in excluding international aviation and shipping emissions, the UK has missed a critical opportunity for bold climate leadership. Since the dawn of emissions counting, the international nature of large chunks of the shipping and aviation sectors has given states an alibi for not accounting for the climate impacts of these polluters in national plans. The previous UK Conservative government was widely applauded in 2021 for including shipping and aviation in its domestic carbon budget set under the Climate Change Act. That meant accounting for emissions from planes and ships on international journeys, in addition to those travelling between UK stops. But while the UK’s carbon budget accounts for international shipping and aviation, its NDCs, including the latest one, do not. This inconsistent position was reinforced in late October by the UK government’s independent climate advisory body, the Climate Change Committee. The CCC advised the UK government to continue excluding shipping and aviation emissions and instead report them separately to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, in effect confirming the previous government’s approach. This flawed accounting practice has its roots in 1990s UN climate talks. Negotiators trying to agree how best to allocate shipping and aviation emissions to individual countries encountered a lack of enthusiasm from national governments to account for even more emissions. The topic fell off negotiators’ agendas and has still not returned. This negligence has since allowed countries to report shipping and aviation pollution separately from their other emissions, to the detriment of robust climate accounting. #netzero #decarbonisation #shipping #maritimeconnection #ISeaSMEs #socsea https://lnkd.in/eYDxi_uk

It took years of innovation and deliberation to realise that the only way to bridge the gap in green financing are ‘solidarity levies’. Far from tangible solutions and roadmap, the world will continue to face increased product prices and disruptions. IMO comes up with finalised numbers next year while aviation, it seems, will see some emissions trading mechanisms. #environmentallevies #COP29 #greenfinancing #maritime #aviation

🌍✈️🚢 The Best Fuel is the Fuel You Don't Burn 🚢✈️🌍 At the World Bank Pavilion during COP 29 in Baku, many gathered to tackle one of the greatest challenges in the aviation and shipping industries: the need for decarbonisation. This thought-provoking panel explored global mitigation strategies like carbon taxes and levies, drawing insights from IMF's recent analysis. ✨ Highlights from the International Monetary Fund Expert Panel: Ruud de Mooij, Deputy Director, Fiscal Affairs Department, IMF, discussed the benefits and challenges of implementing a global carbon tax on aviation and shipping. He emphasised the dual objectives of decarbonization and revenue generation. Morten Bo Christiansen, SVP & Head of Decarbonization at A.P. Møller – Mærsk A/S, shared insights into shipping's readiness for change, highlighting the industry's strides in adopting green methanol and advocating for efficient carbon pricing mechanisms. Marie Owens Thomsen, Chief Economist & SVP Sustainability at IATA, detailed the aviation industry's commitment to Net Zero by 2050, while expressing concerns regarding the economic feasibility of widespread SAF adoption. Tom Evans, Senior Associate at the European Climate Foundation, underscored the vital need to close the climate finance gap to achieve Paris Agreement targets, with global levies being a potential solution. Moderated by Pilita Clark, Associate Editor at the Financial Times, the discussion showcased varying perspectives on achieving emissions reductions while sustaining vital global transportation sectors. 💡 It is clear - innovative policy and industry collaboration are paramount for fostering sustainable energy transitions. As global citizens, we must explore every avenue to reduce our carbon footprint and support climate finance initiatives. #TheBestFuel #SustainableTransport #Decarbonisation #ClimateAction #COP29 #Aviation #Shipping #CarbonTax #ClimateFinance #IMF #IATA #Sustainability #Decarbonization #FossilFuels Engage with us to continue the conversation on shaping a sustainable future! 🌿🛠️ 📢 [ https://lnkd.in/enJhnmWW ] 📅 Stay tuned for more insights from COP 29 and beyond!

COP29: The UK is wrong to exclude shipping and aviation emissions from its NDC Keir Starmer used his stage time at COP29 on Tuesday to announce the UK as the third country to launch its nationally determined contribution ahead of the February 2025 deadline. The UK’s plan to meet Paris climate targets aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81 per cent relative to 1990s levels. The ambition is welcome but, in excluding international aviation and shipping emissions, the UK has missed a critical opportunity for bold climate leadership. Since the dawn of emissions counting, the international nature of large chunks of the shipping and aviation sectors has given states an alibi for not accounting for the climate impacts of these polluters in national plans. The previous UK Conservative government was widely applauded in 2021 for including shipping and aviation in its domestic carbon budget set under the Climate Change Act. That meant accounting for emissions from planes and ships on international journeys, in addition to those travelling between UK stops. But while the UK’s carbon budget accounts for international shipping and aviation, its NDCs, including the latest one, do not. This inconsistent position was reinforced in late October by the UK government’s independent climate advisory body, the Climate Change Committee. The CCC advised the UK government to continue excluding shipping and aviation emissions and instead report them separately to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, in effect confirming the previous government’s approach. This flawed accounting practice has its roots in 1990s UN climate talks. Negotiators trying to agree how best to allocate shipping and aviation emissions to individual countries encountered a lack of enthusiasm from national governments to account for even more emissions. The topic fell off negotiators’ agendas and has still not returned. This negligence has since allowed countries to report shipping and aviation pollution separately from their other emissions, to the detriment of robust climate accounting. #netzero #decarbonisation #shipping #maritimeconnection #ISeaSMEs #socsea https://lnkd.in/eYDxi_uk

Just like we pay for the delivery costs when we order something online, environmental costs from shipping and aviation should be taken into account when countries do their climate accounting. Unfortunately, the UK hasn't done this with the latest climate plan (known as an NDC) that its submitted to the UN's climate body, the UNFCCC. This is a big missed opportunity. Global shipping and aviation pollution is back to all time highs after Covid. So it's high time countries get serious about cleaning up international transport. https://lnkd.in/eAd8s-Pd Isabela Keuschnigg Opportunity Green Jonathan Hood Daniel Lubin Climate Change Committee #COP29 #UKNDC #Shipping #Aviation

COP29: The UK is among the first handful of countries to introduce the top-line target for its Nationally Determined Contribution, an emissions reduction of 81% compared to 1990 levels. But, the target does not include international aviation and shipping emissions. Writing in Sustainable Views today Jacob Armstrong (he/him), shipping policy manager at Transport & Environment (T&E) and Isabela Keuschnigg, legal officer at Opportunity Green, argue that these emissions should have been included in the NDC. "The UK has missed an opportunity to get ahead of the curb and assume responsibility for international heavily polluting ships and planes" as legal obligations ramp up, they say. Read more below. #COP29 #UKNDC #UKemissions https://lnkd.in/eUx-SP4f

Transport propels economic growth and connects nations – but also contributes to greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. International shipping, inland transport and international aviation UN bodies are working to cut emissions. An official side event at the United Nations Climate Conference (COP 29) brought together IMO, the International Civil Aviation Organization and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe for a side event at COP 29: "Decarbonising Transport: Policies and Strategies For Aviation, Maritime and Land". Read about it here: https://lnkd.in/eD3Fvm6k #Shipping #Maritime #Aviation #Land #SustainableTransport #GHG #COP29 #Decarbonization #ClimateAction #Solutions

Webinar: Advice on International Shipping and Aviation Emissions in NZ’s 2050 Target Tēnā koe, You are invited to attend a on Friday, 13 December at 11.30am to hear about He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission’s soon-to-be-published advice on whether international shipping and aviation emissions should be included in Aotearoa New Zealand’s 2050 emissions reduction target. There will be a short presentation about the recommendations we have made, followed by a Q&A. Register for the webinar here:  https://lnkd.in/gt9zBztG This is a sector-specific webinar, separate to a public webinar on the Commission’s 2050 target review and advice on NZ’s fourth emissions budget, which is being held earlier in the week. Please feel free to forward this invite to others who may want to attend.   About the advice Aotearoa New Zealand’s 2050 emissions reduction target includes emissions from domestic shipping and aviation, but excludes emissions from international shipping and aviation. The Commission has developed advice for the Government on whether these emissions should be included in the target, and if so, how. We will publish the advice on our website before the webinar, once it is made publicly available. We will email you at that time. This review is connected to two other pieces of work, our 2024 review of this target and our advice on the fourth emissions budget period. The Commission provides independent, evidence-based, expert advice to the government of the day about the choices it has, so it can determine the best options for Aotearoa New Zealand. More information Review on whether emissions from international shipping and aviation should be included in the 2050 target, and if so how Review of the 2050 emissions reduction target Advice on the fourth emissions budget (2036–2040), and whether the first, second and third budgets should be revised #CILT #Shipping