COP-29 cop-out: Clean power needs to gain further appeal

The world must help poor countries decarbonize their economies

- DAVID FICKLING

You can regard the depressing denouement of the COP-29 climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, as a sort of diplomatic echo of the US election result three weeks earlier. In the US, progressives found themselves blocked by a coalition of traditional Republicans and a faction of working-class and non-Caucasian supporters whom they'd regarded, perhaps naively, as their natural allies. At the UN climate conference in Baku, rich nations found that efforts to reduce their own emissions and fund climate programmes elsewhere in the world bought them little favour with developing countries most at risk of global warming.

Both situations are powerful examples of aspirational politics. Since the 19th century, conservatives have marketed themselves by arguing that their policies were the best way to achieve the wealth and independence sought by working-class voters. Those opposed to climate action make a similar pitch to low and middle-income nations: Environmentalism is a protectionist plot to keep poor nations poor. Only fossil fuels can provide the development you need to grow wealthy. Rich nations can never do enough to repay the carbon debt they've incurred.