By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

As the world braces for the United States to roll back climate policy gains under President-Elect Donald Trump, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis emphasised the need to stay the course and address climate change at COP29 yesterday.

Mr Davis did not reference Mr Trump or the US in his speech at COP29’s #Together4Transparency Opening High-Level Event, but as a frequent critic of developed countries’ approach to climate policy, his speech came against the backdrop of the US being poised to take a less aggressive approach to implementing policies that tackle climate change.

“In our moment of great uncertainty — a time when we look around and wonder where some of our friends will stand — we’re witnessing our world send us an unmistakable message. 

“This year and last year, we’ve recorded the hottest temperatures in history. Spain has been struck by devastating floods, and in Al-Jawf — a region long synonymous with blistering heat and barren landscapes — snow has fallen, followed by rain, hail, and sudden waterfalls cascading through the desert. These are not ordinary times.

“The world is loudly, urgently telling us something: that our inaction on climate change would be the greatest moral failure of our era. We are the generation that brought solidarity to fight a pandemic, yet today, in the face of climate change, the contrast is troubling. Where we saw unified action against COVID-19, we now see hesitation and delay in addressing the climate crisis. And so, friends, I ask — will we heed the call, or will we let history record our failure?”

Experts are concerned that a Trump administration would once again withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement, an international treaty that aims to limit global warming and mitigate climate change impacts. So far, 194 countries and the European Union have joined the agreement to keep global temperature rise below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, ideally limiting it to 1.5°C. 

The New York Times reported last week that Mr Trump’s transition team has prepared executive orders to withdraw from the Paris Agreement and reduce the size of some national monuments to allow for increased drilling and mining.

Last week, Mr Davis told reporters he did not expect Mr Trump’s victory to derail his efforts to engage developed countries in climate action. However, during his remarks at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, yesterday, Mr Davis stressed the importance of a united global approach to climate change. 

“The greatest challenge we face isn’t just political will — it’s political change. We’re witnessing governments come to power that are retreating from climate commitments, dismissing the Paris Agreement, and turning inward,” Mr Davis said.

“This isn’t a crisis we can afford to address sporadically, nor is it a battle that can be won in isolated chapters, written and erased with every election. If we leave climate action to the whims of political cycles, our planet’s future becomes precarious. The climate crisis does not pause for elections or accommodate the sway of changing political tides. It demands continuity, commitment, and, most of all, solidarity.”

Mr Davis highlighted initiatives like #Together4Transparency, launched at COP27, which aims to ensure climate commitments are visible, measurable, and upheld. He also noted the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) under the Paris Agreement, which requires countries to submit Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) starting in 2024 to track their progress. 

Mr Davis said these reports are the primary means for each nation to demonstrate its progress, making the ETF “a living record of our global climate commitments.”

Mr Davis also warned that how nations respond to the climate crisis will affect future generations.

“Even if some of our friends turn away from this cause — even if political tides change and commitments falter — we must hold the line,” he said. “We must remember that the preservation of humanity cannot be left to chance, nor can it be treated as a gamble in the arena of political change. Let our actions today serve as a lasting promise that we will not turn our backs on each other or our planet, even when the path is difficult, even when the allies are few. Together, we can meet this moment and build a just, sustainable world for generations to come.”