A Bangladeshi family whose house was destroyed by a cyclone. Extreme weather is already more common in many parts of the world due to climate change.

Cancun, December 11th, 2010. After two weeks of difficult negotiations the Climate talks in Cancun finally delivered concrete results, according to CARE International.

“We welcome the important progress made but we should be cautious because the difficult questions of mitigation and finance remain unresolved”, said Poul Erik Lauridsen, CARE’s Climate Change Advocacy Coordinator.

The Cancún Agreement comes as a pleasant surprise for everyone still reeling from the disappointment at Copenhagen. “There is no outright cause for celebration, but at least we heave a sigh of relief. The Cancún Agreement shows that multilateral negotiations can produce results when there is political will”, said Lauridsen. “Nonetheless, many issues remain unresolved to finalize a global climate change agreement.“

A Green Climate Fund has now been established. Even though it has no money in it yet, and many of its rules still need to be worked out, it is an important declaration of commitment to a fair, ambitious and binding deal in Durban next year. “It looks like a lovely Christmas present. But there is nothing in the box yet”, said Lauridsen.

An agreement on reducing emissions from deforestation (REDD+) was reached at last, though the most contentious issue of how REDD will be financed was deferred for later talks. “The REDD text agreed in Cancun is much weaker on safeguards than what we hoped to achieve” cautioned Raja Jarrah, CARE’s REDD Adviser. “It contains a few loopholes. We need to make sure the way a REDD mechanism works in practice really does benefit the planet as well as the peoples and communities that depend on the forests.”

After difficult negotiations, the fact that a framework on climate change adaptation was agreed is a significant achievement.  Some of the stickier issues are left to resolve over the coming year, such as agreeing which countries are most vulnerable, and the arrangements to compensate countries for permanent loss and damager due to climate change. “There is still a lot to be worked out on adaptation. Substantial funding is absolutely essential”, commented Poul Erik Lauridsen. “But for now this agreement is good news for poor communities most affected by climate change.”

CARE International welcomes the explicit inclusion of gender considerations in adaptation and REDD+ as climate change affects women and men differently and their roles responding to the impact are different.

The Cancún Agreement did not, however deliver ambitious and binding emission reductions to keep the world on a 2 degree pathway. This is fundamental to a global agreement on climate change that seeks to address the causes rather than respond to the symptoms. Lauridsen concluded: “Time is running out and the longer we delay reducing emissions, the more massive the adaptation response will have to be.”

Media contact in Cancun:

Sandra Bulling
Senior Media Officer, CARE Germany-Luxemburg
Mobile:  (+521) 998 1972974 (Mexican mobile)
(+49) 151 126 27 123 (German mobile)
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