Bonn press conference, June 16th: Civil Society Calls for Tripling of Adaptation Finance
Developed countries seem unable to recall climate commitments to triple adaptation finance made just seven months ago
Bonn, 19 June 2026:- As the annual UNFCCC climate meeting (SB 64, June 8-18) closed in Bonn, the Global Climate and Health Alliance called on governments of developed countries to stop blocking Global Goal on Adaptation negotiations and to triple adaptation finance for the sake of health and lives of people everywhere.
“During this week’s negotiations, developed countries seemed unable to recall their commitment to tripling adaptation finance by 2025 – a pledge they made just seven months ago at COP30”, said Jess Beagley, Policy Lead at the Global Climate and Health Alliance. “There can simply be no health without finance for adaptation action. The same applies for wider climate finance, including for mitigation or loss and damage.”
In other finance negotiating rooms, progress was also observed to be slow, although Brazil has shared a letter to the COP32 Presidency requesting a dedicated work programme on climate finance, including article 9, paragraph 1 of the Paris Agreement, which refers to public grant-based finance: “Developed country Parties shall provide financial resources to assist developing country Parties with respect to both mitigation and adaptation in continuation of their existing obligations under the Convention.”
“Developed countries have hindered implementation and blocked progress across negotiations by failing to refer to climate finance – while developing countries already bearing the health impacts and wider burdens of climate impacts are unable to implement national climate plans without it”, continued Beagley. “This block on progress is compounded by the influence of harmful polluting industries such as fossil fuels, contributing to a lack of progress on outcomes relating to mitigation and science. Following the dialogue between the UNFCCC Secretariat, the COP31 Presidency, Parties and Observers convened last week, we urge Parties to regulate participation in UNFCCC meetings in a manner commensurate with the health risks to national populations”.
“Yet even after almost two weeks of discussion in Bonn, it was not possible for a substantive decision on the mitigation work programme to be forwarded for consideration in Antalya”, concluded Beagley. “If the mitigation work programme is to continue, it must make clear links to the Global Stocktake, or else dialogues will remain talkshops, isolated from the implementation so desperately needed to protect populations from the accelerating health impacts of climate change.”
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
During SB 64, several countries sought to weaken the role of the IPCC in providing the best available science on climate change.
“The climate change problem cannot be resolved without a clear understanding of the evidence”, said Nova Tebbe, Post-Doctoral Researcher with Global Climate and Health Alliance. “The IPCC’s vital role must be bolstered, including by strengthening evidence by and about developing and vulnerable countries; and by protecting IPCC findings and recommendations from inappropriate influence.”
“Conducting research and scientific advancements on climate change is essential to tackling climate change and ensure healthy lives for all”, added Tebbe. “Though research gaps exist and there needs to be improvements towards inclusive participation of researchers from around the world, the IPCC remains foundational to the UNFCCC process. As such, all efforts must be made to ensure the upcoming IPCC AR7 report is integrated into the second global stocktake as we evaluate progress on the Paris Agreement for the second time. Protecting and improving health is dependent on it.”
“During SB64, progress was made on what a mechanism for a just transition mechanism might look like, but with several diverging views that will lead to more conversations at COP31”, said Tebbe. “It is essential that health is included in the scope of the mechanism, along with adequate resources and support, in order to save lives and build resilience by transitioning away from fossil fuels.”
Loss and Damage
“Although loss and damage did not appear on the agenda in Bonn, the failure of countries to make progress in other negotiations has grave implications for loss and damage”, said Michele Baker, Policy Coordinator at the Global Climate and Health Alliance. “The failure to make meaningful progress on mitigation to reduce emissions and limit climate change impacts, coupled with the failure to advance adaptation finance to make our communities more resilient to the impacts of climate change, will only result in greater loss and damage, and the cost will be the health and lives of people around the world.”
“These challenges are further compounded by a Fund for Responding to Loss and Damages that remains severely underfunded compared to what is required to meet the needs of communities most vulnerable to the climate crisis”, said Baker.
“In the lead up to COP31, the State of Loss and Damage Report timeline and outputs must stay on track to reveal the true scale of needs faced by vulnerable communities”, concluded Baker. “In addition to greater pledges from developed countries, a resource mobilization strategy is critical to support the fund’s sustainability ensuring availability of life saving funds for those who need them most.”
ENDS
Contact:
Dave Walsh, Communications Advisor, Global Climate and Health Alliance, [email protected], +34 691 826 764 (Available from 0630 CET)
About GCHA
The Global Climate and Health Alliance is a consortium of more than 250 health professional and health civil society organisations and networks from around the world addressing climate change. We are united by a shared vision of an equitable, sustainable future, in which the health impacts of climate change are minimised, and the health co-benefits of climate change mitigation are maximised.
Find out more: https://climateandhealthalliance.org/who-we-are/about/
