December, 01 2023, 10:09am EDT
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COP28 Presidency Unveils new ‘Alterra’ $30 Billion Renewable Energy Fund in Collaboration with BlackRock and Brookfield
350.org Raises Concerns over Funding Claims and Safeguard Deficiencies
DUBAI
In an announcement today, the COP28 Presidency with investment giants BlackRock and Brookfield announced to establish a $30 billion fund dedicated to renewable energy in Emerging and Developing Economies. While scaling up investment in renewables is much needed, 350.org raises concerns regarding the accuracy of fund claims and the absence of critical safeguards against potentially harmful investments.
“In the pursuit of a greener tomorrow, we must scrutinize the COP28 fund’s bold claims. While in principle a step in the right direction, we would need to check that the claims by the presidency are not overblown. It seems that safeguards against dangerous distractions and projects that harm communities are missing” says Andreas Sieber, Associate Director of Policy and Campaigns of 350.org
The majority of the $30 billion fund is expected to operate at market rates rather than through concessional finance or grants – a financial approach deemed essential for the substantial upscaling of renewable deployment in the Global South.
Presently, the fund stands at a mere $6.5 billion, not $30bn and is only “expected” to attract additional funds, leaving the timeline for achieving the full “commitment” of $30 billion unclear. Of the total sum, $5 billion is planned to be designated for “risk mitigation capital,” in principle a positive step. Yet, this can be expected to come in the form of concessional loans which can help in particular to unlock private capital. However, 350.org expresses apprehension about the lack of safeguards to prevent the accumulation of unsustainable debt, for both market rate and concessional finance instruments.
“What we can take at face value right now is a fund of $6.5bn which will lend at market rates ‘for global investments, including the Global South’ – this isn’t wrong per se, but as such not a game changer and certainly not an adequate response to the financing needs of countries in the Global South” says Andreas Sieber, Associate Director of Policy and Campaigns of 350.org
While acknowledging the potential of concessional loans to attract additional private investment, 350.org questions the bold claim of unlocking $250 billion by 2030, deeming it potentially exaggerated and urging a closer examination of the fund’s feasibility.
The composition of the fund’s leadership raises further concerns, with three out of four members having a documented history of involvement in fossil fuel investments or having led fossil fuel companies. This has prompted 350.org to highlight concerns about the potential exclusion of essential renewable investments, such as Carbon Capture and Storage, and the need for a strategic shift away from fossil fuel-related endeavors.
350.org calls for a transparent and comprehensive assessment of the fund’s governance, ensuring it aligns with principles of responsible and ethical investment to effectively drive the transition towards a sustainable, green energy future.
Zaki Mamdoo, 350.org Campaign Coordinator, StopEACOP said:
“History shows that when rich countries extract fossil fuels in poorer countries there are usually consequences, like worsening social and economic inequalities on top of deepening the climate crisis. 30 billion USD of climate funds managed by the likes of these companies risk replicating the same systems that worsen inequalities. We must support affordable and energy-saving solutions.
We also need to put decision-making power in the hands of the many, instead of bankers. People should be actively involved in making decisions. Community-centered, community-led, and community-owned wind and solar energy projects are the models that will bring us to an energy transition rooted in justice.”
350 is building a future that's just, prosperous, equitable and safe from the effects of the climate crisis. We're an international movement of ordinary people working to end the age of fossil fuels and build a world of community-led renewable energy for all.
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Labor advocates on Thursday decried a ruling by the California Supreme Court upholding a lower court's affirmation of a state ballot measure allowing app-based ride and delivery companies to classify their drivers as independent contractors, limiting their worker rights.
The court's seven justices ruled unanimously in Castellanos v. State of California that Proposition 22, which was approved by 58% of California voters in 2020, complies with the state constitution. Prop 22—which was overturned in 2021 by an Alameda County Superior Court judge in 2021—was upheld in March 2023 by the state's 1st District Court of Appeals.
The business models of app-based companies including DoorDash, Instacart, Lyft, and Uber rely upon minimizing frontline worker compensation by categorizing drivers as independent contractors instead of employees. Independent contractors are not entitled to unemployment insurance, health insurance, or compensation for business expenses.
There are approximately 1.4 million app-based gig workers in California, according to industry estimates.
While DoorDash hailed Thursday's ruling as "not only a victory for Dashers, but also for democracy itself," gig worker advocates condemned the decision.
"Over the last three years, gig workers across California have experienced firsthand that Prop 22 is nothing more than a bait-and-switch meant to enrich global corporations at the expense of the Black, brown, and immigrant workers who power their earnings," plaintiff Hector Castellanos, who drives for Uber and Lyft, said in a statement.
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Lorena Gonzalez, president of the California Federation of Labor Unions, AFL-CIO, said that "we are deeply disappointed that the state Supreme Court has allowed tech corporations to buy their way out of basic labor laws despite Proposition 22's inconsistencies with our state constitution."
"These companies have upended our social contract, forcing workers and the public to take on the inherent risk created by this work, while they profit," she continued. "A.B. 5 granted virtually all California workers the right to be paid for all hours worked, health and safety standards, unemployment insurance, workers compensation, and the right to organize."
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The Gig Workers Rising campaign said on social media that "Uber and other app corporations spent $220 million to buy this law, and they did it by tricking Californians."
Prop 22's passage in November 2020 with nearly 59% of the vote was the culmination of what was by far the most expensive ballot measure in California history. App-based companies and their backers outspent labor and progressive groups by more than 10 to 1, with proponents pouring a staggering $204.5 million into the "yes" campaign's coffers against just $19 million for the "no" side.
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Veena Dubal, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine who focuses on labor and inequality, toldCalMatters that Thursday's ruling was "a really tragic outcome," but "it's not the end of the road."
Dubal's sentiment was echoed by some California state legislators, who said the ruling presents an opportunity to act.
"While this decision is frustrating, it must also be motivating," said state Senate Labor Committee Chair Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-28). "I'm more determined than ever to ensure that all workers—including our diverse and Black, Indigenous, and people of color-led gig workforce—have the basic protections of workers compensation, paid sick leave, family leave, disability insurance, and the right to form a union."
Prop 22 has served as a template for lawmakers in other states seeking to deny or limit basic worker rights, benefits, and protections.
In Massachusetts, app-based companies have been fighting for years to get a measure to classify drivers as contractors on the state ballot. In 2022, Lyft made the largest political donation in state history—$14.4 million—to a coalition funding one such proposal.
Last month, Uber and Lyft reached an agreement with the office of Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, a Democrat, to pay $175 million to settle a lawsuit filed in 2020. As part of the deal, the companies also agreed to increase driver pay and provide paid sick leave, accident insurance, and some health benefits. The agreement does not address how app-based gig workers should be classified.
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March for Our Lives, which was launched after the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, honored Harris with the group's first-ever endorsement on Wednesday, calling her "the right person to stand up for us and fight for the country we deserve."
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"Democrats are at a critical crossroads with young people," the coalition wrote to Harris on Thursday. "Polls showed Biden and Trump neck-and-neck among young voters."
ANew York Times/Siena College poll conducted July 22-24 shows Trump leading Harris 48% to 47% among likely voters and 48% to 46% among registered voters—differences that fall within the margin of error.
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The performers are represented by Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), which last year won a contract for TV and film actors that included "unprecedented provisions for consent and compensation that will protect members from the threat of AI," after the union went on strike for four months.
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Unionized actors want protections that would stop video game companies from training AI to replicate actors' voices or likeness without their consent and without compensating them.
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