By Oren Anolik, Ambassador of Israel in Cyprus
World leaders are presently convening for probably the most essential conferences of our generation-the COP 26 UN Local weather Change Convention will happen from 31 October to 12 November 2021 in Glasgow, UK. In the course of the course of this convention, leaders will try and agree on the targets and methods during which essentially the most dire penalties of local weather change could also be prevented. The COP26 assembly is a crucial crossroad; some could even say fateful. If we, as human society, can agree on the goal of web zero emissions by 2050, then we could seemingly keep away from crossing the warming threshold of 1.5 levels Celsius. This can guarantee that we’ll keep away from essentially the most critical penalties of the local weather disaster. If an settlement can’t be reached nonetheless, then we’ll inevitably transfer far nearer in the direction of the big variety of pure disasters which can be threatening our future.
The problem is immense, however it’s potential: for the primary time in human historical past, the hassle wanted calls for that every one main international gamers be mobilized, together with governments, the personal sector, civil society, the media, and academia, in addition to spiritual leaders and others. For the primary time, humanity can also be going through a tangible menace unprecedented in scope and energy that can have far-reaching implications for a lot of generations. We should due to this fact make each potential effort to make sure that the Glasgow local weather convention is successful, and set ourselves on a path that can safe local weather stability, safety, and prosperity for all of the world’s residents.
On this context, sensible and cheap options that may be rapidly carried out on a broad scale are what we now have to each scale back greenhouse gasoline emissions and construct resilience and adaptation to the results of the local weather disaster. In these areas, Israel stands out as a major nation in local weather innovation, possessing a various vary of firms and start-ups investing on this subject. Collectively, these components have created an distinctive local weather innovation ecosystem that features over 1,200 firms and start-ups – and which is continually rising, in keeping with Israel’s first State of Local weather Tech 2021 Report. The truth that some 10% of all new high-tech firms based in Israel final yr had been within the subject of local weather innovation is only one instance that speaks to the vibrancy of Israel’s start-up panorama.
The vary of options that Israel has to supply is various. In agriculture, Israel provides drip irrigation and precision agriculture, and within the subject of water and water loss prevention in city methods, Israel holds the world file with its 3% water loss fee and 90% wastewater reusage fee. Israel additionally has options to supply in desalination, vitality storage in compressed air or ice, vitality effectivity, reforestation, sustainable transportation and mobility, the event of latest supplies, animal protein substitutes similar to 3D-printed steak – a subject which Israel is main globally – and meals loss prevention, in addition to many different thrilling areas.
Israel is supportive of the Cyprus Authorities’s Initiative for coordinating Local weather Change Actions within the Japanese Mediterranean and Center East (EMME). We see it because the cornerstone for creating the much-needed resilience for our area, which has been significantly affected by this disaster.
Each nations cooperate carefully in numerous fields. Τhis collaboration might be additional developed by facilitating extra synergies between the 2 governments, the personal sector and the academia.
Israel is taken into account one of many world’s main nations within the subject of local weather innovation and is usually a main worldwide drive within the provision of solutions and options to the local weather disaster. And at a regional stage it desires to speculate its efforts in the direction of constructing cooperation, decreasing danger, and maximizing advantages for all nations of the area.
Israel desires to share its information and collaborate with the intention to implement these options, which can significantly help in reaching international mitigation targets, constructing resilience amongst already-affected nations and communities, and implementing the UN Sustainable Growth Targets (SDGs). Worldwide cooperation within the subject of local weather innovation can also be a possibility to strengthen the financial system, create new job openings, and permit humanity to prosper and flourish whereas preserving nature, the local weather, and our planet’s ecological variety. Allow us to work collectively!
We sincerely hope that the local weather convention in Glasgow would be the optimistic turning level in the way forward for humanity that we so sorely want. It’s inside our energy to make that occur.