‘There should be more education on climate change’

Northern Cape residents say there should be more education on climate change, its impact and how to mitigate it.

With COP27 currently under way in Egypt, many say while they hope world leaders will come up with lasting solutions, small changes made by ordinary citizens will also make a difference.

The Northern Cape is one of the provinces predicted to be hardest hit by climate change, with already prolonged droughts and flood in desert areas.

Young people say education will assist to get people to take global warming seriously.

They also want leaders to come to agreement on greenhouse emissions and to stick to those deals.

Kimberly resident, Chaney Visser says, “I think people should start taking it more seriously, like we should start with small children. I think if they grew up thinking that this is important, I should not do this. We should not do this because then it could change, like the next generation could change things. So, I don’t think right now leaders could do anything because people are not they’re not taking this seriously.”

Another resident, Chanelle Mosito says, “We, as the people, are the effect and the cause of global warming, and I think our leaders can, like, spend more on changing this, like maybe the sub cutting trees and making fires in the transports that we use, ja.”

“I think what leaders can do is to come up with a protocol of agreement, or, let me say, invite world leaders to come on the call. and I came in to lessen the emission of gases in the atmosphere by measures such as, for instance, maybe planting more trees. They should stop cutting trees. The modi cut, they should plant more trees,” says Alfeses Bomelo, a Kimberly resident.

COP 27 Climate Conference | Opening ceremony

Ramaphosa on COP27

President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa went to COP27 with a strong position that multilateral financial institutions need to lower the cost for developing economies to borrow money to fund their climate adaptation and mitigation efforts.

COP27 is taking place at a time when developing countries are under increased pressure to contribute more to reducing global warming.

South Africa will be chairing a high-level roundtable on just transition, and will be making the case for developed economies to do more in supporting developing countries to meet their climate change commitments.

Last week Friday, Ramaphosa said South Africa required around R1.5 trillion for a term of five years, and going forward, this will increase.

President Ramaphosa also criticised the industrialised countries for failure to implement the promises they made at the climate summit COP21 in Paris in 2015.

President Ramaphosa touches down in Egypt for COP27 Climate Conference: