The Hard Problem of Carbon Emissions and Developing Asia (w/ Jeff Delmon)

After a slow start, delegates to the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties, or COP26, found momentum. That’s cause for hope. Even the reps from Green Peace seemed satisfied.

The question on everyone’s lips now is: What’s next? Will the world go back to business-as-usual, consume-at-will, and climate-be-damned? Or this time around, has the prospect for change wiggled its way into the crevices of human complacency?

This battle is far from won. And on the front lines, where change really matters, countries must now contend with how to practically meet those carbon emission obligations. This puts the developing world in a bit of a pickle. For many, obligations to their own people rival commitments to climate. And in burgeoning democracies, leaders elected to improve infrastructure, provide healthcare, and create jobs won’t last the political season if they don’t deliver. It’s complicated. But that’s why Jeff Delmon is here with me this episode to explain. Jeff is a Singapore-based Senior Public-Private Partnerships Specialist at the World Bank.