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The Head of State: Fighting Climate Change is not only a Moral Obligation, but also Requires a New Approach to Achieving Economic Growth

Fighting climate change is not only a moral obligation, but also makes it necessary to reconsider the approaches to achieving economic growth. This is what President Rosen Plevneliev said, who took part in the summit within the 21st Conference of the parties to the UN Framework convention on climate change. The aim of the world forum is to achieve a global, legally-binding agreement which should unite the efforts of the individual countries to limit the average temperature rise to 2°C.

“This agreement will not only bring to a successful end two decades of intense climate negotiations, but will also catalyze the transformation of the global economy,” the Head of State said. The President recalled that the cost of clean energy has declined dramatically in the past years and today we can leave behind the resource-intensive production models from the past. “Fighting global warming requires that we change the way we live and work. All countries should contribute to decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, but they can also benefit from the economic opportunities of the low carbon economy,” Rosen Plevneliev emphasized.

The President was adamant that the new model of economic growth should not be a privilege for the advanced countries and called on for more investments and a speeded-up transfer of low carbon technologies to the less developed countries.

President Rosen Plevneliev assured the participants in the forum that Bulgaria and the Southeast European countries are part of the efforts to implement the 2030 European energy and climate security goals and to ensure the success of our global mission to cope with climate change. “As a member of the EU Bulgaria is a strong supporter of the policy of an open Energy Union by involving countries beyond the EU borders. The energy efficiency, accessibility and diversification are crucial for the sustainable development,” the Head of State said.

The President further highlighted our country’s efforts to implement the Third National Action Plan on climate change and an ambitious national energy efficiency program. “Bulgaria managed to reach the EU 2020 goals on renewables, seven years in advance and currently their share has reached 20% of energy mix. We reduced greenhouse emissions by 20% and increased energy efficiency by 20%,” the Head of State emphasized. In Rosen Plevneliev’s words, our ecosystems and biodiversity protection are fundamental for the climate mitigation and Bulgaria is the EU champion in protected territories within Natura 2000 – about 30 percent of Bulgaria’s territory is within the network.

“Our goals are high and we must deliver. The 2030 EU target, which we share, commits us to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40%,” the President further said. In the Head of State’s opinion, the new global agreement on climate change should enhance the transparency and accountability system and the assessment of the achieved results.

The President further recalled that a mere couple of months ago we adopted the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the state and government leaders committed themselves to working for their full implementation. “This meeting is a big test whether we can pool efforts and act together to guarantee the future of all humankind. Our future is priceless but the carbon emissions are not and today we ought to decide how we will pay this price,” the Bulgarian Head of State further told the participants in the forum.

The 21st Conference of the parties to the UN Framework convention on climate change in Paris will continue until 11 December. More than 150 state and government leaders, one thousand government and independent experts, as well as representatives of NGOs on environmental protection, human rights and others are taking part in the forum.

The conference started with a moment of silence in tribute to victims of the 13 November Paris terror attacks.