Accelerating Climate Finance: Taxing the Bad for Urgent Action

An advisory panel to the COP28 talks in Dubai has recommended increasing taxes on polluting activities and cutting fossil fuel subsidies to generate trillions of dollars for climate change initiatives. The panel suggested higher carbon taxes, including levies on emissions from the maritime and aviation sectors, as potential options. The report also highlighted the need to reallocate existing revenue streams and emphasized the urgency of new funding sources. The authors called for voluntary contributions from energy companies and proposed a carbon levy on shipping. The panel estimated that emerging and developing economies will require $2.4 trillion in annual investments by 2030 to transition to clean energy and address climate damage. They urged rich nations to fulfill their promise of $100 billion in climate aid and triple the volume of concessional loans by 2030.