The SLOCAT Report ‘COP27 Outcomes for Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport’ provides a critical analysis of the transport-relevant content of the Sharm el-Sheikh Implementation Plan (SHIP), the official outcome document of COP27. It also identifies open questions on the implications, signalling areas for further work on the path to COP28. Moreover, this report summarises new transport initiatives and commitments announced on the occasion of COP27 and provides key updates on the ones launched on the occasion of COP26. Finally, this report also summarises events (co) led and supported by SLOCAT at COP27, with no aspiration of honouring the multitude of transport events by SLOCAT Partners and the wider sustainable low carbon transport community.
Transport Community Engagement at COP27
On 6-18 November 2022, the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt hosted the 27th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP 27), with the aim of accelerating global climate action through emissions reduction, scaled-up adaptation efforts and enhanced flows of appropriate finance, recognising that ‘just transition’ remains a priority for developing countries worldwide. Together with partners in the SLOCAT Task Force on Transport Community Engagement in the UNFCCC, SLOCAT strived to:
- Enhance the transport community’s engagement with the Egypt COP27 Presidency and Egyptian High-Level Climate Action Champion.
- Promote critical transport thematic elements, including the scale up of walking, cycling and public transport; freight and global supply chains; and African and Global South transport perspectives within the wider climate change process.
- Achieve growing credibility, influence and increased cooperation within and beyond the transport community (e.g. urban, renewables, health).
- Curate broadened electrification discussions within the UK COP26 Presidency’s Zero Emission Vehicles Transition Council, including Global South perspectives.
- Continue our ongoing service as official Co-Focal Point for the Transport sector in the Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action.
Four thematic areas towards COP27
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Against the backdrop of Six Actions to Enable Walking, Cycling and Public Transport for People and the Planet – A Call to Action by SLOCAT, this year’s edition of SLOCAT Transport Day at COP was dedicated to the topic of enabling meaningful investment across these modes towards a transformative systemic shift in mobility.
SLOCAT Messages and Knowledge Products
At COP27 Sharm el Sheikh, governments at all levels, multilateral organisations, international financial institutions and national development banks must act to meaningfully scale up walking, cycling and public transport systems, particularly in the Global South.
The SLOCAT Partnership calls on these stakeholders to enable walking, cycling and public transport solutions as core elements of their climate action for transport by specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based action in six areas.
In order to reach the 1.5°C target of the Paris Agreement and provide equitable access to transport and mobility for all, the urgent transformation of transport is necessary. The 11 SLOCAT SLOCAT Vision for Land Transport Transformations articulate the transformations necessary to enable sustainable, low carbon land transport; especially considering the availability of solutions and the urgency with which action must be taken.
For COP27, an African COP, SLOCAT is highlighting African perspectives of these transformations and showcasing case studies from the continent.
The African Voices Towards COP27 blog series features a wide range of local professionals, experts and change makers to elevate voices from African professionals seeking to tackle transport and mobility challenges with context-adapted and cost-effective solutions. 15 blogs were contributed by 26 authors from 14 countries. Collectively, these blogs present a multi-stakeholder space for peers to exchange, learn from one other and explore opportunities for collaboration towards COP27 and beyond.
This Report analyses trends in the transport decarbonisation ambition, targets and actions in the climate strategies submitted by countries in the framework of the Paris Agreement. Specifically, the analysis focuses on Long-Term Strategies (LTS) starting from 2016 and on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) starting from 2019. On the basis of the analysis, the report seeks to establish to what extent climate action in transport by countries is on track to deliver on the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming below 1.5 °C. The Report also identifies gaps and shortcomings in the transport dimension of these national climate strategies; while it provides recommendations on how to enhance it. This October 2022 Update assesses the impact of NDCs with targets related to mitigating transport greenhouse gas emission on the overall trajectory of transport emissions. Findings show that, if the targets were to be met, the growth of transport emissions would only be slowed down but not put on the radical contention path that is required to support the goal of limiting global warming below 1.5 °C.
The NDCs Hall of Fame by SLOCAT
The NDCs Hall of Fame by SLOCAT puts the spotlight on the major transport strengths and issues in the second generation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted so far by countries in the framework of the Paris Agreement.
Actions to Reduce Emissions and Boost the Resilience of Freight Transport and Global Supply Chains: SLOCAT Guidelines for NDCs
To secure their place in the future net zero economy, countries can use their NDCs to set their freight transport and logistics systems on track to become net zero and resilient. Some key elements of a NDC that enables impactful action on decarbonisation and resilience of freight transport and global supply chains include:
- A NDC that enables action on transport includes a transport-related GHG mitigation target in addition to the common economy-wide emissions mitigation target.
NDCs should include mitigation actions for freight transport structured by the Avoid-Shift-Improve framework.
Transport at COP27
For COP27, SLOCAT compiled transport-focused events, including other events organised by our partners, the transport community and the COP27 Presidency.
In preparation for COP27, SLOCAT will compile and list transport-focused events, as well as other events organised by the transport community and the COP27 Presidency as we become aware of them. To include your event in this compilation, kindly contact Tokam Cabrel and Ambika Sairam.
For more information on COP27 logistics and programme and details on SLOCAT activities, visit this Trello Board (TBA).
COP27 Presidency flagship initiative on Low Carbon Transport for Urban Sustainability (LOTUS)
On the Solutions Day on 17 November, the COP27 Presidency launched a transformative initiative that activates systemic change to improve and decarbonise the urban mobility landscape, responding to the urgent need and willingness to move away from the legacy ‘mode-first’ mindset. This approach serves to strengthen the foundational enablers of change as first-order priority, which will then allow existing efforts to be scaled and replicated across modes and geographies.
Official website I Final Concept Note as of 4 November 2022
Visit the Trello board for more background information about the collaborative multi-stakeholder consultation process under the leadership of the COP27 Presidency. To participate in the initiative, all parties and stakeholders are kindly invited to express their interest, by filling in this registration form.
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