Climate disasters are so frequent that they no longer shock us. But the world is doing too little to combat climate change and prepare for the disasters that will surely befall countries, Samantha Power said Tuesday morning in a speech at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C. .
video credit: Aubrey Morse, Roy Henry, Patrick Ridgely / Johns Hopkins University
“Many people remember orange skies choked with wildfire smoke, cities turned rivers, [and] “The roads and doorknobs are literally melting in the scorching heat,” said the 19th administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), an independent agency of the U.S. government that leads national development and humanitarian efforts in more than 100 countries around the world. said one Power. “Despite the fact that we know these disasters are here to stay, and despite the fact that everyone expects them to get worse, the world remains at the scale we need. We're not investing in preparing our communities for these disasters that are close to the scale of .”
In this sense, we are all vulnerable and must act quickly to prevent “a catastrophe that has lost its power to shock our spirits.” [but] In fact, it's a huge shock to our system. [and] It is destroying crops, infrastructure and livelihoods,” Power said, adding: “The shocks of climate change are pushing millions of people into hunger and Africa is seeing progress in fighting diseases from malaria to dengue to cholera. is going backwards,” he added.
“The world is still not investing in preparing communities for disasters anywhere near the scale we need.”
samantha power
USAID Administrator
She told in-person and online audiences that the solution is two-fold. First, we need to accelerate efforts to reduce fossil fuel emissions and transition to renewable energy. Second, we must provide countries and communities with the tools and resources they need to become climate resilient and avoid the devastating effects of rising temperatures.
“Technology innovation is key to achieving these goals, and private companies and investors need to develop solutions that are affordable and scalable,” said Power, who also served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations from 2013 to 2017. “We need to be proactive and play a bigger role in developing new ideas.” However, investing in climate resilience has long been considered risky. “Currently, only 2% of private sector finance in the climate sector is used to invest in climate resilience,” Power explained, adding that this figure is a significant increase in the ability of developing countries to adapt to climate change. has little impact on the estimated $215 billion annually required to do so.
However, according to a new study, do not have Investing in climate resilience poses even greater risks for private companies seeking to profit from the effort. At last month's World Economic Forum annual meeting, CEOs identified extreme weather as the biggest risk to their businesses, Power said. “We've found that companies have a lot to gain by recognizing that this risk is real before it actually materializes,” she explains, adding, “Every dollar invested in resilient operations and supply chains translates into a median savings of $5.” Avoid lost revenue and costs. ”
image credit: Will Kirk / Johns Hopkins University
The enormous task and funding needed to help countries withstand climate change may seem daunting, but private investors can make it happen by partnering with governments, universities, and communities around the world. It's not impossible, Power said. On behalf of USAID, Mr. Power called on “interested companies and investors to join us and our mission around the world and see how we can work together.” I called out. She urged foundations, financial institutions and donor governments to invest, and called on “young people, like the students here today, to be part of the solution.”
“There's an old wisdom that the hardest part of innovation is identifying the right problem to solve in the first place,” Power told the many students in attendance. ”[But] You won't have a hard time identifying the problem you need to solve, and you may find important answers, especially with the training you receive here. ”
For many in the audience, which included students as well as faculty, alumni, and the general public, Power's talk served as an important reminder of the human side of climate change, as well as motivation to continue working on climate solutions. . How does it impact the community at a granular level?
“We have seen tremendous growth in renewable energy, [as Power pointed out,] Human dimension and community level [have often been overlooked]'' said Benjamin Link, managing director of the Ralph O'Connor Sustainable Energy Institute at Johns Hopkins University. The institute integrates efforts across the university to create and deploy clean, renewable and sustainable energy technologies.
“In the United States, carbon dioxide emissions peaked in 2005 and are on the decline, but this is not the case in many developed countries,” Link continued. Nevertheless, “we need to be part of the solution, because in fact we are all in this together. We have one vibe to share… and , we need to think of this as a common good and a collective effort.”
image credit: Will Kirk / Johns Hopkins University
