Video of the Week: Bonn UNFCCC Inter-sessional Meetings – Carbon Emissions from the “Country of Permafrost”: A Top-10 Emitter for the Global Stocktake

For the first Global Stocktake process under the Paris Agreement, a group of cryosphere research groups made a submission, not on behalf of a government, but for the “Country of Permafrost.” In this June 9 media event at the recent UNFCCC negotiations in Bonn, speakers Dr. Gustaf Hugelius, Co-Director, Bolin Centre for Climate Research, Stockholm University, and Dr. Rachael Treharne, Woodwell Climate Research Center, explain the science behind this “GST” submission – including the sensitivity of permafrost to global warming; how its thaw is already releasing greenhouse gas emissions comparable to the largest emitting countries; and its potential to become one of the largest sources of carbon emissions, should temperatures exceed the 1.5°C Paris limit. Lisa Koperqualuk, Vice President of the Inuit Circumpolar Council Canada, shared how permafrost thaw is already impacting the lives of Arctic indigenous communities. Speakers called for rapid emissions reductions to prevent catastrophic and essentially permanent effects of permafrost thaw.

https://unfccc-events.azureedge.net/SB56_86125/agenda