The findings of today’s IPCC AR6 Report on Impact, Adaptation, and Vulnerability are unequivocal. Climate change is happening now with cascading and compounding effects.
Addressing climate change requires considerably scaled action from all sectors: governments, the private sector, and civil society. It also requires a significant ratcheting up of investment to mitigate the exposures and vulnerabilities of those on the front lines, particularly coastal communities in Least Developed Countries and Small Island States.
The report calls on the global community and the private sector to work at pace to achieve net zero and invest in nature, delivering climate and biodiversity positive outcomes. Importantly, the report recognises the interdependence of climate, biodiversity and people. Financing a climate resilient development pathway that builds the social, economic, and cultural durability of communities is essential. The Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) was established two years ago as a unique collaboration, convening governments, the public and private finance sectors, civil society and local communities to tackle these very issues. The Alliance’s work proves that by working together to drive investment into coastal and marine natural capital, we can build resilience and adaption to the devastating and accelerating rate of climate change.
Karen Sack, Executive Director of ORRAA, said: “The writing is on the wall in bold, extra large letters, that scale and speed are critical if we are to address the compounding impacts of the climate emergency and biodiversity crisis. ORRAA is calling on governments and the finance sector to work quickly to #BackBlue – actively commit to and achieve net zero, endorse the UN‘s blue economy principles and join ORRAA in building a new ocean finance architecture that drives investment into coastal and marine natural capital at scale. This report underlines the imperative to do so.”
Find out more about ORRAA’s #BackBlue initiative here.
