My heart is heavy my friends. As I write this on Wednesday December 13, COP28 is wrapping up without language in the global stocktake (GST) text about an equitable phase out of fossil fuels. Instead we have a call for “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems.” Better than nothing and not enough for the text is full of loopholes and false solutions.

We all feared as much – the Presidency, Sultan Al Jaber, stated publicly that there is “no science” indicating that a phase-out of fossil fuels is needed to restrict global heating to 1.5C, despite the very clear science. At least 2,400 fossil fuel representatives and lobbyists were in attendance and influencing negotiations. More fossil fuel-affiliated delegates were registered than all the delegates from the 10 most climate-vulnerable countries combined, according to an analysis by the Kick Big Polluters out Coalition.  475 Carbon capture and storage industry lobbyists were also in attendance; advocating for untested technologies that climate scientists say will not slow global warming. Al Gore tweeted after reviewing the first final draft that the document is “of the Petrostates, by the Petrostates, and for the Petrostates.”

“We have made an incremental advancement over business as usual when what we really needed is an exponential step-change in our actions and support” the Alliance of Small Island States reported in response to the final GST document.

As climate justice advocates, youth and civil society cried out for a phase out of fossil fuels, they lifted their voices to also demand a ceasefire in Gaza and a stop to the genocide unfolding in front of our eyes. Never again means never again for anyone. Climate justice is racial justice is gender justice is human rights work and land back. We cannot stand on the side of frontline communities if we do not also stand on the side of the Palestinian people. War is as profitable as the extraction, production, and sale of fossil fuels and it contributes to the climate crisis.

If we aspire for a just transition we must put people, and all life really, before profits.

In the midst of my despair yesterday, a coworker shared this much appreciated meme with the team (Originally posted on Instagram by @wangamiro):

This week, in the northern hemisphere, we celebrate the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year. The darkness of winter is an invitation to be in reflection and contemplation, to share stories and learnings gathered in the previous seasons. As we enter that space let’s be mindfuprl of our legacies of resilience and resistance – the incremental progress made at the COPs each year is because of the voices of Climate Justice activists and civil society. Let us plan our next actions; let us build solidarity. Let us rewrite the rules and prioritize those most impacted. Let us act locally for a global impact. We matter and we must continue to persevere to build the world we envision, a just and abundant world for all, beyond the climate crisis.

Susan Phillips
Executive Director

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People Before Profits NOW