Among the blizzard of announcements made as part of the UN Climate Summit over the past few days, one that should not be lost in the storm is the pledge made by French President Francois Hollande to contribute $1 billion to the new Green Climate Fund. This announcement — along with smaller but still significant contributions from Korea, Mexico, Denmark, and Norway — will have a direct impact on the prospects for reaching a new international climate agreement next year in Paris.
Following on a $1 billion pledge from Germany, we at last see a pathway for the fund to meet its goal of a $10 billion initial capitalization — if, that is, the United States and other key countries now follow suit. Only then can the fund get to work on its vital mission: to make strategic, paradigm-shifting investments that spur low-carbon growth and climate resilience in developing countries.
The above excerpt was originally published in The Huffington Post.
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