There's No Planet B: Mitigation, Adaptation, and Loss & Damage

In our ongoing series, There's No Planet B, we want to share everything you need to know about the climate crisis. We previously touched on why we're in a climate crisis, the effects of the crisis, and climate governance. In this episode, we want to tackle the three pillars of international climate change law: mitigation, adaptation, and loss & damage. The Paris Agreement discusses loss and damage using the phrase “averting, minimising and addressing loss and damage.” Loss and damage can be averted by curbing greenhouse gas emissions (mitigation) and minimised by taking preemptive action to protect communities from the consequences of climate change (adaptation). Pakistan -  a country responsible for less than 1% of global emissions - is now facing US$10bn in damage after the devastating floods that hit the country, highlighting something climate campaigners have warned for years - the global south is being disproportionately affected by climate change. Do we have a comprehensive understanding of mechanisms to directly address loss and damage once a climate catastrophe hits? Why is loss and damage in particular, such a contentious issue in climate talks? We discuss this and more with Meenakshi Raman, the President of Sahabat Alam Malaysia, and Head of Programmes at the Third World Network (TWN).

Image credit: Flickr / IRIN photos