The issue of loss and damage needs to be discussed honestly, but it must not derail progress at the crucial climate summit.
At the two-week United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27) in Egypt, financing for ‘loss and damage’ is on the agenda for the first time. This is a landmark: after decades, high emitters are finally hearing the demand that they compensate low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) for the effects of climate change that many are already feeling.
Now all parties must proceed with care, build on research, study other UN environment negotiations and discuss their positions in a constructive spirit of give and take. The need for loss-and-damage finance can no longer be denied. Yet it must not become a wedge issue, dividing nations. If that happens, COP27 and future summits risk failure.
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