Good morning once again from us here in Dubai! 

Here’s a quick catch-up on what you missed yesterday. 

The atmosphere has been somewhat overshadowed by revelations that COP28 president Al Jaber said a phase-out of fossil fuels would not allow sustainable development “unless you want to take the world back into caves”.

In response to the furore around the report from UK newspaper The Guardian,  which concerns comments that the Adnoc CEO made during an online event on 21 November, the presidency called a surprise press conference. 

“We’re here because we very much believe and respect the science,” Al Jaber sought to reassure the crowd.

Other topics on the table yesterday were finance, trade, gender equality and accountability.

A new ‘Gender-Responsive Just Transitions & Climate Action Partnership’ was unveiled, endorsed by over 60 Parties. With a three-year package of measures, it seeks to address the disproportionate impact of climate-related job loss on women. 

And a number of countries and banks – including the UK, France, World Bank and European Investment Bank (EIB) – agreed to include more climate-resilient debt clauses in their lending. These CRDCs allow vulnerable countries to pause debt repayments when climate disaster strikes, affording them ‘breathing space’ to recover.

Today the focus turns to energy and industry, the just transition, and Indigenous Peoples.