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Asia-Pacific Climate Digest (#4): 8th April 2021
Updated: Apr 9, 2021
Curated and compiled by Purnima Joshi
This issue covers news articles on the US climate envoy John Kerry’s tour to United Arab Emirates, India and Bangladesh, ahead of the 2-day virtual summit on climate later this month, where 40 world leaders are expected to participate. India being identified as a key partner to address climate change by US President Joe Biden, and Bangladesh leaders’ opinions on the subject of global warming.
We also have news articles on the environmental effects of climate change as gauged from varied occurrences like the cherry blossom in Japan, sandstorms in China and floods in Vietnam; steps being taken by financial organisations and the finance sector across the globe from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and also various ESG funds being mobilised to support and address the issue; glimpses of various energy-related moves such as Japan’s view of coal-fired plants as well as renewable energy initiatives.
We hope this issue – with its carefully chosen features – serves as a good consolidation of this week’s news on climate change in the Asia-Pacific region. Happy reading!
Category : LEADERSHIP
Title : US climate envoy heads to India to push ‘climate ambition’
Author : Reuters Correspondent
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is facing calls from the US and the United Kingdom to commit India, the world’s third-biggest carbon emitter, to a net-zero emissions target by 2050.
India says it will not only stick to the Paris accord to reduce its carbon footprint by 33-35 percent from its 2005 levels by 2030, but will likely exceed those goals as it ramps up the use of renewable energy.
URL : https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/4/1/us-climate-envoy-heads-to-india-to-push-climate-ambition
Source : Reuters
Date : April 1, 2021
Category : LEADERSHIP
Title : Biden discovers India as partner for arresting Climate Change
Author : The Statesman Correspondent
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has called upon all to remain united in the war against nature to avert a possible loss for mankind. She said that humans are consciously destroying the very support systems that are keeping us alive.
She said we want to see climate financing unleashed, not only towards a low-carbon economy, but also for the promised $100 billion, and 50% dedicated to climate resilience building.
Source : Dhaka Tribune
Date : April 2, 2021
Category : WEATHER
Title : One degree is all it takes
Author : Yusra Salim
Climate change is not something which has evolved out of the blue it has longterm consequences and generally people don’t consider how small changes which they have adapted with time in their lives are causing this change.
To make changes in this system we need to make our carbon footprint as small as we can and go back to being as close to nature as we possibly can.
URL : https://tribune.com.pk/story/2293093/one-degree-is-all-it-takes
Source : The Tribune
Date : April 4, 2021
Category : BUSINESS
Title : Climate-related disclosures are on the rise
Author : M Ramesh
Though the number is still woefully small, the good news is that more Indian companies are auditing their carbon footprint.
Emissions disclosures fall under three categories: Scope 1, which covers direct emissions from sources owned or controlled by the entity; Scope 2, which includes indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling; and Scope 3, which counts all emissions down the entire supply chain of the business entity.
Source : The Hindu Business Line
Date : April 5, 2021
Category : ENVIRONMENT
Title : Climate resilience scheme for urban areas approved
Author : Vietnam News Correspondent
The Prime Minister has approved a scheme for climate resilience development in urban areas in the next 10 years.
The scheme, which begins this year, focuses on responding to climate change and reasonable use of natural resources to upgrade and develop urban areas, as well as reducing air, water and land pollution.
The scheme is set to be carried out from now until 2030 in 63 cities and provinces nationwide
URL : https://vietnamnews.vn/environment/917286/climate-resilience-scheme-for-urban-areas-approved.html
Source : Vietnam News
Date : April 3, 2021
Category : ENVIRONMENT
Title : Pakistan responds to US climate summit snub with commitment to environment
Author : Sana Jamal
Pakistani officials said the country remains “fully committed” to addressing climate change and its green initiatives have been “well accepted and appreciated around the world.”
Islamabad’s response came after social media rebuke as the US President Joe Biden administration ignored Pakistan at the Leaders Summit on Climate (April 22-23) in which the Biden invited 40 world leaders after the US rejoined the Paris climate accord which former US President Trump abruptly withdrew from.
Source : Gulf News
Date : March 29, 2021
Category : ENVIRONMENT
Title : Japan sees earliest cherry blossom since 1400s - and scientists say it's down to climate change
Author : Amar Mehta
Climate change has led to the earliest cherry blossom season in Japan in 1,200 years, experts say.
The peak bloom arrived on 26 March in Kyoto, the earliest since 27 March 1409, while in Tokyo they reached full bloom on 22 March - the second-earliest date since 1953.
Source : Sky News
Date : March 30, 2021
Category : ENVIRONMENT
Title : China sandstorms highlight threat of climate crisis
Author : Michael Standaert
Recent sandstorms that shrouded Beijing in a post-apocalyptic orange haze and intensive droughts in other parts of the country are bringing into stark relief the challenges China faces from rising temperatures induced by the climate crisis.
Source : The Guardian
Date : April 3, 2021
Category : ENVIRONMENT
Title : Seriously ugly: here’s how Australia will look if the world heats up by 3 degrees Celsius this century
Author : Ove Hoegh-Guldberg
Imagine, for a moment, a different kind of Australia. One where bushfires on the catastrophic scale of Black Summer happen almost every year. One where 50 degree Celsius (122 degree Fahrenheit) days in Sydney and Melbourne are common. Where storms and flooding have violently reshaped our coastlines, and unique ecosystems have been damaged beyond recognition – including the Great Barrier Reef, which no longer exists.
Source : South China Morning Post
Date : April 1, 2021
Category : FINANCE
Title : World Bank Announces New Climate Change Action Plan
Author : PRN Correspondent
World Bank Group announced a new Climate Change Action Plan which will increase climate finance, focus on climate results and impact, improve and expand climate diagnostics and reduce emissions and climate vulnerabilities in key systems.
35 percent of World Bank Group financing will have climate co-benefits, on average, over the next five years; and 50 percent of World Bank climate financing will support adaptation and resilience.
Source : Press Release Network
Date : April 3, 2021
Category : FINANCE
Title : How will climate change reporting impact future mortgage assessments?
Author : Rozi Jones
All UK mortgage lenders need to start planning now how they will map the impact of climate change on their existing and future portfolios. The warning comes ahead of the launch in June of the final details of the PRA’s data requirements on the resilience of banks and insurers to climate change.
Source : Financial Reporter
Date : March 30, 2021
Category : FINANCE
Title : Southeast Asia Weighs Benchmarks for $3 Trillion Green Financing
Author : Elfie Chew
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is seeking to establish a framework for green investments in the region that could be worth as much as $3 trillion.
As global pressure mounts to drastically cut carbon output to stave off climate change, governments and corporations are shifting attention toward renewable power and lowering emissions. The move by Asean, a region heavily reliant on coal, is key to establishing clarity and common definitions necessary for markets to know what constitutes “green” investing.
Source : Bloomberg Green
Date : March 30, 2021
Category : FINANCE
Title : Climate change both an existential risk and an opportunity for the financial sector: MAS chief Ravi Menon
Author : Crispina Robert
Climate change and sustainability will be the “predominant preoccupation” of business and finance.
As a global financial centre, Singapore had to think seriously about not just what the risk was, but in mitigating it and in the process make a clear shift towards a lower carbon economy.
Source : Channel News Asia
Date : April 1, 2021
Category : FINANCE
Title : Taiwan leads Asia in share of ESG assets as dearth of options at home drive funds offshore in search of green energy investments
Author : Ralph Jemmings
A wave of environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment fervour is sweeping Taiwan, turning the island into a leader in Asia as the market for sustainable investing takes off.
Taiwanese investors held more ESG mutual fund and exchange traded fund assets as a total share of assets under management than any Asian economy in the third quarter of last year.
Source : South China Morning Post
Date : April 3, 2021
Category : FINANCE
Title : ADB: Climate finance a priority in recovery
Author : The Philippine Star Correspondent
Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) said access to climate finance is a key priority for Asia Pacific nations as governments design and implement a green and resilient recovery from the pandemic.
ADB said the pandemic presents an opportunity to rebuild economies with more resilient and sustainable infrastructure.
URL : https://www.philstar.com/business/2021/04/04/2088660/adb-climate-finance-priority-recovery
Source : The Philippine Star
Date : April 4, 2021
Category : ENERGY
Title : Climate Action: Why India Can’t Meet Its Net-Zero Target by Itself