A/74/161
(h)
Take action to substantially reduce food waste.
81. Corporations have used Investor-State dispute settlement mechanisms in
investment treaties to file lawsuits seeking compensation for lost profits when
climate policies are strengthened, creating regulatory chill. States should
withdraw consent to arbitration or negotiate a carve-out for climate actions as a
safeguard to protect against these types of lawsuits. 97
82. States that have substantial fossil fuel industries should incorporate
strategies for a just transition, including social and econo mic impact assessments
as well as policies and programmes for skills development, retraining and adult
education.
83. Some proposed geoengineering strategies to mitigate climate change involve
the large-scale manipulation of natural systems through measures such as
fertilizing the oceans with iron, installing mirrors in outer space to reflect solar
radiation, or shooting aerosols into the atmosphere (imitating the effects of large
volcanic eruptions). These untested technological approaches could have massi ve
impacts on human rights, severely disrupting ocean and terrestrial ecosystems,
interfering with food production and harming biodiversity. These types of
geoengineering strategies should not be used until their implications are much
better understood.
C.
Adaptation to protect vulnerable people
84. The goals of adaptation are to prevent and reduce vulnerability, strengthen
resilience, minimize harm and capitalize on new opportunities. The annual costs
of adaptation could range from $140 billion to $300 billion by 2030, and from
$280 billion to $500 billion by 2050. 98
85. The implementation of adaptation measures needs to be accelerated
dramatically. A rights-based approach should be applied in order to tackle the
root causes of vulnerability, such as poverty, inequality, discrimination and
marginalization, and not merely the symptoms of climate change impacts.
Developing States should pursue climate-resilient, low-carbon development,
integrating adaptation and disaster risk reduc tion measures, with financial and
technical assistance from developed States. Priority should be given to the most
vulnerable and marginalized communities.
86. To accelerate the implementation of effective adaptation actions, States
should:
(a) Develop adaptation actions through inclusive, participatory processes,
informed by the knowledge, aspirations and specific contexts of affected
countries, communities and individuals;
(b) Implement national adaptation plans and/or national adaptation
programmes of action that address both extreme weather disasters and slowonset events by building or upgrading infrastructure (such as water, sanitation,
health and education facilities) to be climate resilient; developing disaster risk
reduction and management strategies, early warning systems and emergency
response plans; and providing disaster relief and humanitarian assistance in
emergencies, consistent with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction
2015–2030;
(c) Provide social protection mechanisms to reduce vulnerability to
climate-related disasters and stresses, enabling people to become more resilient;
(d) Prioritize nature-based adaptation actions, because protecting and
restoring ecosystems can reduce vulnerability, buffering the impacts of extreme
weather disasters and slow-onset events, and enhance ecosystem services,
including fresh water, clean air, fertile soil, pest control and pollination;
(e) Accelerate and scale up actions to strengthen the resilience and
adaptive capacity of food systems and people’s livelihoods in response to climate
variability and extremes;
__________________
97
98
20/22
Nathan Lobel and Matteo Fermeglia, “Investment Protection and Unburnable Carbon: Competing
Commitments in International Investment and Climate Governance”, Diritto del Commercio
Internazionale (June 2019).
UNEP, The Adaptation Gap Report 2018 (Nairobi, UNEP, 2018).
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