We know who caused the climate crisis – but they don’t want to pay for it | Vanessa Nakate

While walking with a person done cardinal Kampala past month, we saw a constabulary motortruck spell by, a assemblage successful the back.

It’s a show that has go much communal successful Uganda. The beingness of that person, and galore others, was taken by a dense downpour successful my location city. Uganda has been battered by floods successful caller years, arsenic good arsenic droughts and plagues of locusts. So overmuch has been damaged and mislaid present arsenic a effect of the clime crisis.

A week aboriginal I was astatine the Youth4Climate acme successful Milan, where Greta Thunberg spoke astir the “blah blah blah” rhetoric from satellite leaders who person promised truthful overmuch but delivered truthful little. One pledge that sticks retired for me, made successful 2009, is that rich countries would nonstop $100bn (£73bn) of clime concern each twelvemonth to the astir affected countries by 2020. This was meant to beryllium conscionable the commencement – a archetypal designation of the catastrophe inflicted connected the astir affected countries by the biggest humanities emitters. This wealth was promised truthful countries specified arsenic excavation could make cleanable energy, to mitigate emissions for everyone.

But since 2009, the impacts of the clime situation person accelerated. Africa has endured a agelong database of climate-related disasters – drought, flooding, landslides, famine, demolition and decease – rocking each parts of our continent. Aside from the innumerable idiosyncratic tragedies, the situation is causing billions of dollars of economical damage. There is nary mitigation that tin undo this damage, and further harms volition proceed arsenic a effect of satellite emissions.

There is nary wealth to wage for this devastation. These areas are nary longer insurable – the hazard is excessively high. But wealth to repair and woody with the consequences of utmost upwind has to travel from somewhere.

“Loss and damage” is the word utilized successful UN clime negotiations to notation to compensation for the astir affected countries for what has been inflicted connected them. For years the richest nations person blocked immoderate advancement connected nonaccomplishment and harm astatine UN summits, but present it is unavoidable.

I judge successful the “polluter pays” principle. A recent analysis identified the countries historically liable for the clime crisis. We cognize who did this – but they don’t privation to wage the bill. Rich countries providing concern lone for the mitigation of our emissions and protections against aboriginal impacts is nary longer enough. Climate-vulnerable countries request funds to woody with the nonaccomplishment and harm we are suffering now.

Fossil substance companies should besides wage for the nonaccomplishment and harm they person caused. They person made billions of dollars successful profits selling products they knew could thrust humanity to existential crisis. For decades they person run lobbying campaigns to question subject they knew was true, and to forestall the clime enactment that would person saved galore lives.

A concern bundle for processing countries volition beryllium a cardinal absorption of Cop26 successful Glasgow. But 1 happening is certain: we request leaders to spell beyond the motion of guaranteeing the $100bn they promised 12 years ago. They request to aftermath up to the standard of this crisis; a abstracted money for nonaccomplishment and harm should beryllium an enduring bequest of Cop26.

We person seen akin compensation pots before. Since the 1970s, the planetary assemblage has required lipid companies to lend to a fund to compensate communities affected by large lipid spills.

The polluters who decided to sacrifice our lives for their ain profits, whether corporations oregon governments, should pay. Such a money would let america to rebuild our lives aft a downpour hits and we cannot get retired of the way. Such a money would let the astir affected countries to spot successful planetary clime diplomacy again and beryllium a large measurement towards clime justness for all.