Global South demands $1.300.000.000.000 ($1.3 trillion) in Climate Finance per year - see full article africanclimatewire.org/2024/09/african-ministers-call-for-1-3-trillion-climate-finance-target/

David Ligouy is a French writer and climate champion who is very concerned, as we all should be, about global climate change, loss of biodiversity, and nuclear weapons. For the past six years, he has been fighting the twin climate and biodiversity crises by traveling around the globe and campaigning for climate justice and against the expansion of fossil fuels. Ligouy earned a master’s of science degree specializing in renewable energy technology for developing countries. 

The 54-year old activist and renewable energy expert is also a member of the peace movement NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) Le Mouvement de la Paix  which originated during the French Resistance in WW 2. This organization took part in the successful international campaign behind the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons which entered into force on January 22, 2021. 

According to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the treaty currently has 94 signatories and 73 state parties worldwide. ICAN was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017.   The use, possession, testing, and transfer of nuclear weapons are now banned under international law, although they are still being built and financed. The campaign was supported by the “Don’t Bank on the Bomb” divestment campaign.

For Peace and the Planet - Make Peace with Nature

Inspired by the successful ICAN campaign, Ligouy has initiated two new campaigns, “Bank on Biodiversity” and “Bank on Climate'', to mobilize funding for biodiversity conservation and climate finance. Ligouy is in his 6th year of riding a solar-panel-powered electric-assist trike (recumbent tricycle) around the world - 30 countries on five continents to date. In 2023, he attended the COP28 (Conference of Parties) on Climate Change in Dubai and this year he is on the road will to the COP29 in Azerbaijan from India. His main objective is to raise public awareness about the massive decline in biodiversity and the global climate crisis. 

During his journey, Ligouy connects with grass-roots groups and supports global youth and vulnerable communities who will suffer the most severe consequences. He has also aims to amplify the growing call for an Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, an international mechanism that would end the expansion of new coal, oil, and gas projects and support a transition that is not just fast and fair, but also financed. You can endorse the treaty proposal here. 

If you want to learn more on how to move finance out of fossil fuels go to Global Oil & Gas Exit List (GOGEL), a comprehensive publicly available database provided by the NGO urgewald. 

In December 2022, David Ligouy attended as a journalist the UN Biodiversity Summit (COP15) in Montreal where 196 countries agreed to halt and reverse biodiversity loss under the Global Biodiversity Framework. This historic deal aims to significantly increase finance for biodiversity from all sources (domestic, international – both public and private) mobilizing at least USD 200 billion per year by 2030. Additionally, the world community committed to reduce incentives, including subsidies, harmful to biodiversity by at least USD 500 billion per year. This is a great success for the “Bank on Biodiversity” campaign. 

The Target 18 of the framework is to: “Identify by 2025, and eliminate, phase out or reform incentives - including subsidies, harmful for biodiversity, in a proportionate, just, fair, effective and equitable way - while substantially and progressively reducing them by at least $500 billion per year by 2030.”

Even if the implementation of this target might be a bit slow, the decision to get rid of environmentally harmful subsidies is for Ligouy already a great victory. According to the World Bank report “Detox Development: Repurposing Environmentally Harmful Subsidies”, trillions of dollars wasted on subsidies for agriculture, fishing and fossil fuels could be used to tackle climate change instead of harming people and the planet.

At the COP28 in Dubai Ligouy advocated for the provision in section 28( h) of the outcome paper that aims to:  “Eliminate inefficient fossil fuel subsidies that do not address energy poverty or just transitions, as soon as possible”. At the 2023 UN climate summit more than 12 environmental ministers (including from Canada and France) signed a joint statement by a Dutch-led coalition to phase out fossil fuel subsidies. 

2024 is a critical year and turning point to stop the rise of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. The world’s governments are currently spending $7 trillion per year subsidizing fossil fuels – a sum that, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), is much higher than the money needed to be invested annually in clean energy by 2030. 

Repurposing tax dollar subsidies is therefore a top priority for Ligouy. He points out that China spends USD 2.2 trillion annually as harmful subsidies followed by the USA (USD 760 billion) and India (USD 340 billion). The EU and its Member States have repeatedly pledged to phase-out fossil fuel subsidies by 2025. However, these commitments are still falling short on implementation, according to a CAN Europe report released this summer. EU countries are failing to walk the talk: instead of a gradual decline of fossil fuel subsidies, the latter is in fact on the rise, putting in jeopardy the goal of hitting the 2025 deadline.

The EU Parliament will call again for a rapid phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies at the upcoming COP29 in Baku, encouraging countries to reallocate these resources for climate action. The EU Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety also wants COP29 to coordinate an “unambiguous signal” as a follow-up to the COP28 commitments to transition away from fossil fuels, to triple green energy and double energy efficiency by 2030. The adaptation finance needs of developing countries are estimated at USD 215–387 billion annually up until 2030 (see section 68 of the Dubai outcome paper) which could be realized by diverting inefficient subsidies. 

Another outcome of COP28 is section 28 (g): “Accelerating the reduction of emissions from road transport on a range of pathways, including through development of infrastructure and rapid deployment of zero-and low-emission vehicles.” 

As part of his advocacy work Ligouy promotes solar-e-bikes as an efficient way to reduce CO2 emissions. This collaborative website for knowledge sharing explains the design and conversion process: www.velo-solaire.com. Ligouy conducts free workshops for organizations to produce open source e-kits for cargo an transport bikes for low income people and small business owners. He considers these actions a critical part of creating a regenerative and redistributive economy for people and the planet.

David Ligouy is a compelling speaker and is available for media interviews in French, Spanish or English. He has authored a three book series, titled “On The Front Line with a Solar Bike”, available at www.bankontheclimate.com in French and Spanish, and the last volume “Able to Be Human” in English. These books are also available on Kindle or Paperback on Amazon.

In 2024, Ligouy has has continued his journey from Dubai across India to Azerbaijan on his new solar tandem trike named “Ibn Battuta”, campaigning for climate finance and nature-positive investments in the lead up to the 2024 UN Climate Change Conferences:

COP 16 Biodiversity in Cali, Colombia, Oct. 21 - Nov. 1 COP29 Climate Change Conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov.  11. - 22.  UN Summit for the Future in New York, USA, Sept. 20 - 23 

David Ligouy’s contact information: WhatsApp: (+33) 6 77 87 02 93, India +91 9136 90 12 53, 
email: davidligouy@yahoo.fr