Drawdown Lift

There are a few things that are non-negotiable for all life on Earth, among them, water, food, and shelter. Unfortunately, human activities are driving widespread habitat loss and degradation, destroying all three of these prerequisites for life. To stave off further biodiversity loss, protecting and restoring nature is essential. 

Recently, the new United States and Chinese climate envoys, John Podesta and Liu Zhenmin, met for the first time. The meeting came amid expectations that the Biden administration would increase tariffs on Chinese goods such as EVs, solar equipment, batteries, and critical minerals.

To meet climate and health goals, countries must fund black carbon reduction at the scale and urgency that the threat warrants.Growing up, visiting my grandparents in rural India was the highlight of my summer vacation. In the 1990s, before social media began to consume pastimes, frolicking around with my cousins and admiring the beautiful nature was enough to satiate my childish heart.

Climate change has given us some sense of how interconnected we all are. 

Halting climate change, alleviating poverty, and stemming the loss of biodiversity are some of the most critical challenges humanity faces today. With finite resources to invest in addressing them, how do we decide where to focus our efforts?

Editor’s note: Last month, Project Drawdown policy advisor Dan Jasper attended climate negotiations in Bonn to promote climate solutions that also improve human well-being. Hosted by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the negotiations in Bonn provided a space for technical conversations in the lead-up to COP28.

Last week’s release of the UN’s International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) synthesis report distills almost a decade of the latest climate science into an urgent, systemic call to action — imploring us to mobilize resources to tackle climate change and poverty at the same time if we are to ensure a just and sustainable future.

On March 9, Project Drawdown’s Drawdown Lift program hosted a lively discussion with the Clean Cooking Alliance about how women are leading on climate action and climate justice and implementing solutions that strengthen adaptation, boost human well-being, and mitigate future emissions. As a continuation of International Women’s Day, we embraced equity, focusing on two of the most defining challenges of our time—climate change and poverty.

Did you know that climate mitigation solutions that contribute to increasing human well-being, alleviating extreme poverty, addressing inequities, and advancing adaptation are at hand?

High-income countries can hardly expect African countries to forgo the use of their own natural resources without investment of US$70 billion a year to meet their renewable energy needs.