Leaving Taiwan out of official UN climate conversation hurts everyone
While the world is focusing on handling the COVID-19 crisis, we cannot afford to ignore the looming existential crisis of climate change. This crisis cannot be solved unless there are urgent, effective, and global actions. It is a truly worldwide problem which will require every country’s participation to achieve an effective solution.
To that end, the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) is set to take place this November in Glasgow, Scotland. Here, countries will come together to develop policies and agreements which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and thus control this escalating crisis.
Importantly, this will be the first COP meeting since the election of U.S. President Joe Biden. His early moves as president, including the signing of an executive order to rejoin the Paris Agreement, have indicated that the U.S. will be a strong leader again in the international community on this effort, joining countries like Canada in leading the global community on addressing climate change.
However, in this context of growing global ambition to tackle climate change, there is a pressing need for continued efforts from countries like Canada to support Taiwan’s meaningful participation.
Taiwan has long been prevented from participating in international multilateral fora such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, for obvious reasons. This unacceptable action stands squarely against the UN’s acknowledgment that: “…the global nature of climate change calls for the widest possible co-operation by all countries and their participation in an effective and appropriate international response.”
Without action from the international community to rectify this, Taiwan will be excluded from COP26 again. In past COP meetings, Taiwan has engaged in side meetings through NGOs with observer status, but this level of engagement does not allow for robust information sharing or for Taiwan to submit to voluntary national review.
This means that a large, developed economy with a serious approach to tackling climate change will be left out, thereby hampering what should be a global effort. No matter how effective individual countries like Canada may be at tackling climate change, there will be no effective solution without global co-operation.
We saw the impact of this kind of exclusion during the COVID-19 pandemic. Taiwan was the first country to alert the WHO about an emerging SARS-like virus in Wuhan, China. And yet, our warning was ignored because we are excluded from the UN system. According to the Australian Lowy Institute, Taiwan was among the world’s top three most effective countries at combatting the virus, despite proximity and significant travel between Taiwan and China. We believe that we can contribute similarly to efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Despite being excluded from UN efforts, Taiwan is working hard to tackle environmental challenges in a manner consistent with our international obligations and commitments. Indeed, Taiwan was among the first countries in the world to write long-term emission reduction targets into law. According to the Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Management Act, Taiwan’s national carbon emissions must be half of 2005 levels by 2050. To meet that target, our EPA set five-year phased goals of two per cent, 10 per cent, and 20 per cent decreases below 2005 levels by 2020, 2025, and 2030, respectively.
Latest statistics indicate that we are well on track to reach our first goal. This is particularly significant as much of Taiwan’s economy is based on manufacturing sectors; our successful experiences in reducing emissions can be shared with other nations.
Moreover, Taiwan is a significant partner for Canada’s clean energy export sector. We already have major clean energy projects with Canadian companies, such as the Hai Long offshore wind power project with investment from Canada’s Northland Power, and Quebec’s Pension Fund, Caisse de Depot et Placement, will also invest in Taiwan’s offshore wind farm. We are optimistic about how Canada and Taiwan can continue to work together to advance a shared green energy future.
Much like Canada and the U.S., addressing climate change in a serious, systematic manner is a major priority for Taiwan. Our long-term success is conditional upon global support. We are grateful that countries like Canada have routinely stood up for Taiwan by reaffirming their support for our meaningful participation in international multilateral forums, especially when our participation provides important contributions to the global public good. Hopefully, Taiwan can continue to count on these positive efforts from Canada when it comes to participating in COP26 and beyond.
Climate change poses an existential threat which we must resolve to address as an international community. We cannot allow politics to diminish our ability to solve this crisis. Taiwan is committed to being part of the solution; all we ask is that we be included so that we may contribute positively to global efforts to fight climate change as part of the international community.
