Green Pulse Ep 61: Implications for Asean at COP26

16:27 min

Synopsis: Every first and third Monday of the month, The Straits Times analyses the beat of the changing environment, from biodiversity conservation to climate change.

Nations are gathering in Glasgow, Scotland, for two weeks from Oct 31 to hammer out key details of how the 2015 Paris Agreement can be implemented. The meeting, called COP26, is touted as a key one in helping to set the world on the right track in reducing the impacts of climate change. Key issues to hammer out include those related to climate finance and urging countries to set more ambitious climate pledges, called nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to do more to reduce emissions.

In this first of a two-part series on what COP26 means for Asean, ST environment correspondent Audrey Tan and climate change editor David Fogarty talk to Ms Melissa Low, a research fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Energy Studies Institute, on key issues for the region that will be discussed at the climate conference.

They discuss the following points:

What does the call for more ambitious climate targets mean for the region? (1:28)
What kinds of help do countries in Asean need to build greener economies? (3:40)
Which countries in the region are most impacted by the loss and damage wreaked by climate change? (7:25)
Beyond climate targets and net-zero pledges, what else matters in the effort to reduce emissions to avert climate change? (11:43)
How high are the stakes for South-east Asia at COP26? (13:25)