Climate timelines are not set by elections or cost curves, reminds the country’s ex-central banker Ravi Menon. But he cautioned that in the short term, political headwinds and the US climate retreat could impact investment decisions.
China is the most affected country in Asia from floods and typhoons, followed by Myanmar, India and the Philippines. But high-income countries are not exempt from climate damage.
Thirteen countries submitted their Nationally Determined Contributions to the UN – including Singapore, the only Asian nation to do so – while the majority of Paris Agreement signatories missed a 10 February deadline. Countries could be holding back in light of uncertainties in a post-Trump world, say observers.
“Natural” world heritage sites, such as the Galápagos Islands, Serengeti national park and Great Barrier Reef, could be exposed to multiple climate extremes by the end of the century, researchers warn.