Saleemul Huq is a climate is not an official negotiator, but a consultant for the delegations of the least developed countries peaks. They suffer particularly from global warming – because they are poor and because they areas are often located in particularly hard-hit world. Huqs home country, Bangladesh belongs to this group. In the capital, Dhaka Huq is head of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development Independent University, Bangladesh. He has participated in every summit on climate change.
In Katowice, it is also progressing on Saturday very tough. Many Details are still open. For the countries, which advises Huq, the negotiations focused mainly on three things: How you can provide the adaptation to climate change? How much support you get from the Rich? And who compensates the damage caused by climate change? Huq is a specialist in these matters.
Zeit ONLINE: Mr Huq, as they remain even after 24 years, motivated for the climate summit?
Saleemul Huq: It’s only two weeks out of the year that I dedicate to the climate summits. The other 50 weeks, I’m working on-the-spot. That is what motivates me. And it’s much more satisfying to talk than to talk at this event, and talk and talk.
TIME ONLINE: Why are you here?
Huq: for two reasons: I follow the negotiations and may use me for a good result. And on the events on the sidelines of the summit, I meet people who actually do something for climate protection. Especially since the Paris climate agreement is adopted in 2015, will be the becoming more and more important. In the two weeks here, I can meet dozens of people, to meet the I would create throughout the Rest of the year. We talk about our common interests and about what we can do, not about words on a piece of paper.
TIME ONLINE: you play on the dispute last weekend, it was a question whether the summit welcomes the special report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change to 1.5-degree target”,” or just “notes”.
Huq: Yes. Which word one chooses, makes a huge difference. Who takes the report, just to note, says this: He is with us no matter. We do not believe in it.
TIME ONLINE: What exactly do you do in your practical work?
Saleemul Huq © Ted Aljibe/AFP/
Huq: I can help build capacity, so that the poor countries of the climate change. To reduce emissions and adapt to change. The need to learn each country.
Zeit ONLINE: What do you mean: building capacity?
Huq: In the Paris climate agreement, there is an important article, the article 11. He supports the long-term capacity building at the national level. In my case this means I can create a network of universities from the least developed countries. Even the poorest countries have universities in Bangladesh there are more than a hundred. We help you develop your skills to build, in the future, the citizens and leaders in the climate train protection.
TIME ONLINE: Can you give an example?
Huq: Take Bangladesh. In our engineering faculties, students learn all about solar energy and many of the graduates have already made as a solar entrepreneur, self-employed. In Bangladesh, meanwhile, more than five million households are powered by small solar power plants with energy, especially electricity. The are about 20 million poor people.
The second example is agriculture. On the coasts of Bangladesh the sea level is rising. The soils and waters are not, therefore, always salty, so traditional arable plants to flourish. Our researchers have developed new types of, for example, of rice, salt-tolerant. And you support the farmers, these species grow.
TIME ONLINE: On the climate change summits, it is often a matter in which diplomatic words verklausulierten the States concerned to commit themselves to climate protection and how strong your word choice at the end fails. What is the dispute about formulations has to do with their practical work in Bangladesh?
Huq: We hope that the States agree in the negotiations to more ambition in climate protection. Behind it all is that emissions must be reduced to a level with which the global warming remains below 1.5 degrees. This is a really critical brand. Whether we reach two degrees or 1.5 degrees, makes for the people in Bangladesh is a huge difference.
TIME ONLINE: At the Moment, the world is moving more to three degrees plus. And finally, the emissions are actually increased. Why are 1.5 degrees so important?
Huq: If we end up with two degrees instead of 1.5 degrees, will lose in Bangladesh, many tens of thousands of people their livelihoods, especially in low-lying coastal areas, whose residents are now affected. Potentially tens of millions of people could be forced to leave their homeland and to migrate. This is only an approximate order of magnitude, but it shows how big the difference is between two and 1.5 degrees.
TIME ONLINE: What are the countries with the industry?
Huq: Well, the shows, the 1.5-degree report: All will feel the difference between the two and 1.5 degrees. Not just the poor. Climate change is also true of Germany, the UK and the USA – all countries. And all countries have to deal with it.
TIME ONLINE: What is in Katowice for the countries, which will advise you on the most?
Huq: We have an ambitious set of rules want to be as ambitious as possible. And we want that the final document addresses the topic of climate losses and damage according to its relevance. We are now able to lead the damage and losses directly to the man-made climate change, not only on that of individual weather events. About w ir talk. And there must be money to cope with climate damage.
TIME ONLINE: How optimistic are you with a view on the result?
Huq: I’m always optimistic. But I am a realistic Optimist. I try to demand as much as possible, in the awareness that we cannot achieve everything we want. But still, we have to fight for it.
