The Philippines is bracing for another super typhoon this weekend with thousands being told to evacuate from areas already devastated last year by Typhoon Haiyan. Schools and workplaces have closed down as forecasts show Typhoon Hagupit could impact two-thirds of Filipino provinces and reach Category 5 status. The storm is on a path similar to Haiyan, which left more than 7,000 dead or missing last year. It comes as the group Germanwatch listed the Philippines as the country most impacted by climate change last year. It is the third year in a row a major storm in the Philippines has coincided with the United Nations climate change summit, where the disproportionate harm borne by countries least responsible for climate change has been a top issue. Speaking at the summit in Lima, Peru, U.N. climate chief Christiana Figueres acknowledged emissions limits due to be agreed upon at next year’s summit in Paris will not be enough to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.
Christiana Figueres: “We already know, because we have a pretty good sense of what countries will be able to do in the short run, that the sum total of efforts (in Paris) of both governments and non-state actors will not be able to put us on the path for two degrees next year.”
Democracy Now! will broadcast from the U.N. climate summit in Lima, Peru all next week.