We use cookies on this website. By continuing to use this site without changing your cookie settings, you agree that you are happy to accept our privacy policy and for us to access our cookies on your device.
Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: COP28 CLIMATE DEAL
HEADLINE: COP28 Delegates Agree to 'Historic' Transition Away From Fossil Fuels
TEASER: Critics say the agreement has too many loopholes to allow countries to burn coal, oil and gas
PUBLISHED AT: 12/13/2023 at 2:21p
BYLINE: Henry Ridgwell
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: London
VIDEOGRAPHER: Henry Ridgwell
VIDEO EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: MAS, Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCE (S): Zoom, Reuters, APTN, AFP
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB _X_ TV _X_ RADIO __
TRT: 3:04
VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath
TYPE: TVR EDITOR NOTES: Please send questions / edited script to henryridgwell@hotmail.com ))
((INTRO) [Nearly 200 countries have signed a deal to transition away from fossil fuels, at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai. The summit’s president called it a historic agreement – but not all nations are satisfied, as Henry Ridgwell reports.]]
((NARRATOR))
A deal in the desert – that proponents say heralds the end of the age of oil. All 198 nations present at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai signed up to the final deal.
For the first time, the agreement calls on all countries to transition away from fossil fuels – the main driver of climate change.
[[FOR RADIO: COP28 President Sultan Al-Jaber praised the deal.]]
((Sultan al-Jaber, COP28 President (male, in English)))
“It is a plan that is led by the science. It is a balanced plan that tackles emissions, bridges the gap on adaptation, reimagines global finance, and delivers on loss and damage.”
((NARRATOR))
Many delegates welcomed the agreement after two weeks of hard-fought negotiations.
[[FOR RADIO: Among them, U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry.]]
((John Kerry, US Climate Envoy (in English) ))
“Everybody here should be pleased that in a world of Ukraine and the Middle East war and all the other challenges of a planet that is foundering, this is a moment where multilateralism has actually come together and people have taken individual interests and attempted to define the common good.”
((NARRATOR))
More than 100 countries had lobbied for stronger language to fully phase out fossil fuels.
But oil-producing states – led by Saudi Arabia – argued that the world can slash emissions without shunning specific fuels. That prompted criticism from some delegates – including the most vulnerable island nations.
[[FOR RADIO: Anne Rasmussen is chair of the Alliance of Small Island States.]]
((Anne Rasmussen, Alliance of Small Island States (in English) ))
“We have made an incremental advancement over business as usual, when what we really needed is an exponential step change in our actions and support.”
[[FOR RADIO: Jean Su of the Center for Biological Diversity said the language of the text was too weak.]]
((Jean Su, Center for Biological Diversity (in English) ))
“On the one hand, this is a good sign and signal that the world is finally dealing with fossil fuels after almost three decades of refusing to deal with it. But on the other hand, the new text includes cavernous loopholes that will allow for the oil and gas industry to continue.”
((NARRATOR))
That includes the use of so-called carbon capture technology – which removes some carbon dioxide emissions.
((FOR RADIO: Ruth Townend, a climate policy expert at Chatham House.))
((Ruth Townend, Chatham House))
((cf. Zoom logo))
“The energy transition to renewables is far more feasible than trying to capture carbon from the atmosphere. We know what we need to do. And governments now need to find ways that work for them economically and politically to commit to that and then deliver it. And that needs to happen very fast.”
((NARRATOR))
Scientists say we need to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 43 percent in just six years to meet the target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
It remains to be seen whether this COP28 deal marks a turning point – or another missed opportunity.
((Henry Ridgwell, VOA News, London.))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateDecember 13, 2023 13:31 EST
BylineHenry Ridgwell
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English, US Agency for Global Media
