The Fossil of the day Daily count for COP28. The best of the worst....
| Day | Gold |
Silver |
Bronze |
Mention | Ray of the COP |
| Dec 3 | New Zealand | USA | Japan | ||
| Dec 4 | Brazil | South Africa | |||
| Dec 5 | USA | Russia | Japan | ||
| Dec 6 | Alberta | Norway | South Korea | ||
| Dec 8 | Israel | Australia | Russia | ||
| Dec 9 | Europe | Vietnam | |||
| Dec 10 | Israel | USA | |||
| Dec 11 | Saudi Arabia | ||||
| Colossal Fossil | USA | OPEC Russia |
Colombia |
Below are the CAN International Medias Releases for all the Fossil Awards, available
This page will be updated daily.
11 December Fossil Awards
The Biggest and the Baddest, Colossal Fossil goes to the USA
Fossil of the Day: Saudi Arabia
They may be peddling the convenient line that negotiations have ‘hit a dead end’, only they left out a key detail – that THEY are blocking the language on phase-out and any outcomes that impact fossil fuel production and use. They are claiming instead the focus should be on emissions, however, Fossil has seen this smokescreen before. Rather than face the real global problem, they are focusing on maintaining their economic status from oil riches. Using bully tactics, like walkouts, when the rest of the world is finally on the verge of beginning the hard work of ending the age of oil, gas and coal that has put us on track to far exceed 1.5 ̊C is unacceptable. This shameful resistance driven by profit rather than what's best for people and planet has earned Saudi Arabia the Fossil of the Day today.
Colossal Fossil: USA
With great power comes great responsibility, and shirking your responsibility comes with consequences.
They can no longer hide behind domestic politics, market dynamics, geopolitical security, and the need to maintain old alliances. It's time to join the adults table.
It makes us wonder who the USA has been wined and dined by, as they have been unconstructive in
weakening the transparency of carbon trading and promoting voluntary carbon market infrastructure as part of UN markets in Article 6.2.
This year the USA collected multiple dishonorable mentions for:
1) the USA security council veto on a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza which continues to perpetuate an unfolding genocide; and
2) putting forward pennies for loss and damage funding despite its historical role in emissions that have damaged the world while refusing to acknowledge responsibility.
The US has also failed to lead on the Global Goal on Adaptation, climate finance negotiations, ensuring guardrails in markets, etc. Politics can't always be pleasant but the crisis is here and it's time to pay up and do the right thing - lead the world by example.
Dishonourable Mention: OPEC
In the negotiations, we have seen key OPEC members stalling discussions on fossil fuel phase out, disengaging with some discussions under the Mitigation Work Programme, and, unsurprisingly, bringing a large number of fossil fuel lobbyists into the conference halls.
And Russia don’t start walking away - your name’s also on the list.
We’ve seen they have been striking fossil fuel deals while the world pushes to phase them out. The audacity of the Russian President to travel to the UAE (whilst facing arrest in 100 countries following the issuing of an International Criminal Court warrant for war crimes and civilian killings committed in Ukraine) during COP28 to hold discussions for new oil agreements, while sending 70 fossil fuel lobbyists to the conference, is truly breathtaking.
Their plan seems to be to put their heads in the sand and ignore the mounting climate crisis.
OPEC and Russia may have only gotten honourable mentions, but that wasn’t for lack of trying.
Ray of the Day: Colombia
On December 3rd Foreign Affairs Minister Álvaro Leyva said: “To solve the climate problem, we need peace with nature and global peace.” Colombia also signed the COP Presidency’s “Declaration for Relief, Recovery and Peace”. Having previously negotiated peace accords with FARC and armed groups, their connection between peace and climate demonstrates courageous leadership.
Colombia has also consistently stood for, and keeps pushing for, the inclusion of human, labour, gender and Indigenous people’s rights and for civil society inclusion in this process. The openness of Colombia's delegation to engage with civil society, both before and during the COP, demonstrates a commitment to integrate democratic visions of environmental governance. Their leadership in loss and damage, gender, global balance, adaptation, financing, and just transition resonates with millions in Latin America directly affected by climate change.
The Ray of the Day is awarded to Colombia.
10 December Fossil Awards
There is No Climate Justice Without Human Rights, Fossil of the Day is Awarded to Israel
During the march yesterday, civil society chanted ‘no climate justice without human rights’, ‘ceasefire now’. The killing of Palestinians is occurring 2,500 km away from Dubai, where Israel claims it is defending itself. Over the past 63 days, Israel’s violence has extended beyond Gaza, to the civilians of Lebanon and Syria. They have burnt trees, land, and people, shooting and jailing civilians in the West Bank.
For the intent of genocide we are awarding Israel the Fossil of the Day.
The conflict has already taken the lives of more than 7000 Palestinian children and over 17,500 Palestinian people. In the last two days Israel bombed two hospitals, and burned the surrounding refugee tents, including the people inside them.
On Human Rights Day, we must stress that the actions of Israel seek to eliminate Palestinian people through the unfolding genocide and ethnic cleansing. Indigenous leaders recognise that resistance against Israeli colonialism is on the front-line in the battle against Western geopolitical primacy which exploits the labour of racialised peoples of the global south and has brought the Earth’s ecosystems to the brink of collapse. The liberation of Palestinians is directly connected to the liberation of all
Indigenous people. To address the root cause of the climate crisis we must understand, confront and dismantle the imperialist, colonialist and capitalist systems of oppression.
There is no climate justice without human rights. There is no climate justice without the rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Dishonorable mention: USA
The USA can’t escape today without receiving a dishonourable mention. Their veto at the UN Security Council on the resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and the unconditional release of all Israeli hostages, is a shameful act. This essentially condemns the Palestinians living in Gaza to yet more violence leading to an unfolding genocide, with dire humanitarian consequences.
The Biden administration’s support for Israel goes beyond being the honest brokers in the conflict that they claim to be by vetoing UN resolutions, continuing to provide bombs, tank shells, arms and ammunition to Israel, while continuing to circumvent Congress —all of which will be used to fuel the ongoing war crimes in Gaza.
We demand that the Biden administration reverse its current immoral stance and join the international community’s urgent call for an immediate ceasefire and the safe return of all Israeli hostages and illegally held Palestinian prisoners.
We stand with those who grieve and fear for their loved ones, and join the call for peace and safety, where the rights of all are respected without exception and distinction.
Ceasefire now.
9 December Fossil Awards
Attention EU: Loss and Damage is Part of the NCQG
Any further celebrations after they adopted the Loss and Damage fund on the first day will be cancelled if the fund is not continuously filled.
Attention EU! Did you miss the memo? COP28 is the conference where the fossil fuel era ends, once and for all. To align with the 1.5°C liveable target, we must deliver an energy package that is fast, fair, feminist, forever, and FUNDED. Yes, that's right EU, countries need financing for the energy transition, and in case you didn’t realise the energy package includes technical and financial support, essential to accelerate the transition. This is crucial; the lack of support from the EU and other rich nations is halting the progress of these negotiations.
Maybe we should organise a bilateral with the EU and other rich nations to go through the definition of equity, and while we’re at it, we can also define ‘Just Transition’, ‘unabated’, and ‘ambitious’ for them.
It is true that some finance was choreographed in the early stages of these negotiations, but did you really think that would pull the wool over our collective eyes? Climate finance for mitigation, adaptation and loss and damage must be multiplied, and financing for the longer term secured.
The alarm bells are ringing, the EU needs to step up now.
Runner-up – Vietnam
We must be in fashion! A lot of different countries are talking up the crucial role of civil society at COP for brownie points, but forgetting about it when they get home.
Step forward the Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính, who came to COP28 to launch the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) implementation plan. The announcement cited the JETP Political Declaration which states that ‘it is vital that civil society is actively involved in a transparent manner at all stages of the JETP to make sure the necessary transition will be just and inclusive.’
Too bad that back home Vietnam has arrested and detained the country’s most prominent climate leaders on trumped-up charges of “tax evasion” and “appropriation of information.” This after they sought greater accountability in Vietnam's climate change and energy investments. NGOs leading projects and activities related to clean energy and the protection of the environment are also being shut down. These sneaky antics are not going unnoticed by wider civil society, we see the empty seats and we will not remain silent.
We know when we’re winning by how the opposition reacts... and of course, that OPEC letter that happened across our desks. Six prominent individuals who were working on Vietnam’s transition from coal have been targeted, including environmental justice lawyer Mr. Dang Dinh Bach, who is serving a sentence of five years in prison. The UN Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention stated that Bach’s imprisonment is in “violation of international law” and that there is a “systemic problem with arbitrary detention” of numerous environmental defenders in Vietnam. Also targeted were former Obama Foundation scholar, Ms. Hoang Thi Minh Hong, founder of the environmental group CHANGE VN; Ms. Ngo Thi To Nhien, Executive Director of Vietnam Initiative for Energy Transition, an independent Vietnamese energy think tank; Goldman environmental prize winner Nguy Thi Khanh; and Mai Phan Loi and Bach Hung Duong from the Center for Media in Educating Community.
These environmental defenders are instrumental in highlighting the gaps between government commitments and actual action. The lack of safeguards for environmental rights defenders within the JETP framework is deeply concerning for the future accountability of states.
For jailing climate activists and shutting down civil society space on climate issues, Vietnam is well deserving of a Fossil of the Day.
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8 December Fossil awards
There is No Climate Justice Without Human Rights, Fossil of the Day is Awarded to Israel
Runner Up – Russia
Russian is renowned for its skilled chess players, but, let’s face it, Putin is no Anatoly Karpov. In a country where nearly half the federal budget comes from revenues generated by fossil fuels, with 40% allocated to finance the war in Ukraine and other armed conflicts worldwide, he’s using fossil fuels as a key piece in the geopolitical match, militarising their supply with dire consequences for the climate. Russia’s opposition to phase-out language at COP28 is driven by a selfish drive for profit at the expense of people and climate. Their scrutiny of the Tripling Renewable Energy target further undermines the negotiations.
This is not how you execute a Queen’s Gambit.
Therefore, Russia has been awarded Fossil of the Day for putting more effort into exporting fossil fuels than supporting climate solutions. It's time to End Fossil Fuels, Fast, Fair, Funded, Feminist, Forever and make the just and equitable transition to 100% renewable energy.
Runner Up – Australia
Announcing meagre contributions to their own Pacific Resilience Fund and the Green Climate Fund while subsidising the coal and gas industry to the tune of BILLIONS every year is not what a good neighbour does. The A$150m contained within their Pacific Climate Finance Package is like forgetting to bring some beers to the neighbourhood barbeque. Australia’s order of value is evident. As the third largest fossil fuel exporter it must be held responsible for its actions. The climate crisis is having devastating consequences on the Pacific community.
Fossil of the Day loves to bring levity and humour to the UNFCCC spaces, however, we can’t find any humour in the next award.
Israel
Just 2,500 kilometres from the COP28 venue, hostilities in Gaza and Israel have created appalling human suffering, physical and environmental destruction and collective trauma across Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territory.
The international community has a responsibility to use all its influence to prevent further escalation and support an end to this crisis. Over the years, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has resulted in numerous human rights violations and has profoundly impacted the lives of thousands of people over generations.
According to various human rights organizations and United Nations reports, these violations have been truly devastating and are ongoing.
All nations have the responsibility to ensure that international laws are upheld and to stop the unfolding humanitarian disaster in Gaza. Today, as we focus on youth and children, the contrast between military spending and the urgent need for climate finance becomes even more stark. This COP, happening amid such a backdrop, is a stark reminder of the interconnectedness of climate justice, human rights, and the need for a global commitment to peace and sustainability.
We award the Fossil of the Day to Israel in acknowledgment of the numerous impacts this conflict is having. We stand with those who grieve and fear for their loved ones, and join the call for peace and safety, where the rights of all are respected without distinction.
Ceasefire now.
6 December Fossil Awards
Fossil of The Day: An Albertasaurus at COP28? No that is just fossil fuel champion Alberta
Runner-up – Norway
Runner-up - South Korea
5 December Fossil Awards
Today’s Fossil of the Day goes to the World’s largest oil and gas producer, the USA!
Nobody deserves Fossil of the Day more than the world’s largest oil and gas producer, who also happens to be the largest gas and petroleum product exporter and is responsible for over one-third of all planned oil and gas expansion. We are, of course, talking about the USA.
The US is also weakening the possibility for COP28 to adopt a full, fast, fair, and funded fossil fuel phaseout. Their support for inserting unabated fossil fuels into the cover text ignores the science and the grave health and climate injustice impacts of carbon capture and storage and other dangerous “abatement” technologies.
Any further expansion of fossil fuels endangers especially Black, Brown, and Indigenous residents in the U.S. and poisons Global South communities. Over two million people have died from climate-related disasters in the last 50 years, and this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Runner-Up – Russia
Our next deserving recipient of a Fossil is doing their best to undermine the Paris Agreement and our collective climate action as a whole. Russia, for the last time, gas is not green and it certainly isn’t a transition fuel. Despite your resistance at COP28 to the phase-out of fossil fuels in the GST, the renewable revolution is here, and countries are scaling up the deployment of clean power generation and energy efficiency measures.
Speaking of late homework, we need you to come to the front and submit your pledge to the Loss and Damage fund, if you fail to pledge, we will allocate an appropriate amount based on your historical contribution as the third-highest carbon emitter. We’ve seen your capacity to double military spending, how about placing value on lives and the planet for a change.
And if you thought we were going to forget about the elephant in the room, your war on Ukraine attributes to 150 million CO2e of greenhouse gas emissions. This is more than the annual GHG emissions from some highly industrialised countries. There is no climate justice without human rights.
Runner-Up – Japan
Japan was just so thrilled to receive a Fossil of The Day award on Sunday that they took the initiative to get another! They clearly have their eye on the colossal fossil!
Instead of reflecting on their negative report card and looking to improve, Japan doubled down on their decarbonisation strategy. They “clarified” that their decarbonisation efforts focus on no longer constructing new unabated coal-fired power plants. But they missed the point.
Never mind the fact that this commitment was already made over six months ago at the G7 Leaders’ Summit. They conveniently forgot to mention that this policy doesn’t apply to the new coal power plants already planned, or to the future retrofitting of some of their oldest coal plants to extend their lifespan.
They also forgot to mention that they have no plans to phase out Japan’s more than 170 existing coal-fired power units.
Even though Japan, as a developed country, needs to phase out coal power by 2030 in order to achieve the Paris 1.5 goal, it is still planning on using a whopping 19% coal power in 2030, with no coal phaseout date or roadmap!
4 December Fossil Awards
Fossil of the Day Award: Brazil, Opec+ is not how you spell Climate Leadership
Brazil nomination
The excitement at last year’s COP was palpable, with Lula’s Brazil promising to be a breath of fresh air as a climate champion.
But, as Uncle Ben in Spiderman would say, ‘with great power comes great responsibility’. Brazil is the winner of today’s Fossil of the Day as they appear to have mistaken oil production for climate leadership.
Brazil's dash for oil undermines the efforts of Brazilian negotiators in Dubai who are trying to break old deadlocks and act with a sense of urgency.
Brazil's Energy minister, Alexandre Silveira, thought it strangely appropriate to announce membership of Opec+ on day one of the conference. In line with this skewed logic they must be thinking: in for a penny, in for a pound, as they have plans to auction off 603 new oil blocks on December 13, just one day after COP28 ends. This can’t be just a coincidence, right?
According to Agência Pública yesterday, expected emissions from one of the new oil frontiers Brazil wants to open, the Equatorial Margin (which includes blocks at the mouth of the Amazon River) will more than cancel out emission cuts achieved from zero deforestation by 2030. Contrary to what the oil companies tell us, you can’t offset the destruction of an entire ecosystem with one good deed.
Brazil, we don’t want a tour of oil fields when we are in Belémin 2025. And, if you just want to join a club, then may we suggest you follow your next-door neighbour, Colombia by signing up for the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty instead of Opec+.
South Africa Dishonorable Mention
A dishonourable mention goes to South Africa due to its recent decision to expand coal mining operations, violating its commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Attention South Africa, you are being called to the principal’s office. You keep taking shortcuts which will only lead to dead ends on a dead planet if you prioritise short-term economic gain over long-term environmental stability.
Contradicting your previous pledges not only poses a substantial threat to global efforts in mitigating the climate crisis, it's a bad example for all the other kids.
It is time to get back on the right path before you end up on top of the Fossil of the Day podium.
3 December Fossil Awards
Did New Zealand not read the road signs to COP28??? No u-turns on the way to a healthy planet.
New Zealand had been saying all the right things, listening to Indigenous voices, and championing a global phase-out of fossil fuels. But with a new government in the driver’s seat, they seem to have swerved off course and are undermining the Indigenous People-led struggle by announcing plans to reopen Aotearoa waters to oil and gas exploration. In doing so, they have the dishonour of winning the first ‘Fossil of the Day’ award at COP28.
Does Climate Change Minister Simon Watts not hear the climate alarm bells ringing? He may underestimate the devastating climate consequences of this decision but we, and their Pacific island neighbours in Palau, who slammed his intentions as ‘TRAGIC’, certainly do not.
Minister Watts may be new to his role but we remember the decade-long campaign led by Indigenous Māori communities who succeeded in achieving a ban on oil and gas exploration in New Zealand’s oceans. Not only does Watts and the rest of the New Zealand government want to remove the country’s legacy of climate leadership but they also seek to redefine legislative interpretation of the country’s founding Treaty with Māori communities, to reassess Treaty-based policies, and to roll back official use of Māori language – undoing the progress made between Māori and government relationships.
Aotearoa New Zealand, as tangata moana (ocean people), has a responsibility to make sure decisions are in the best interests of their neighbours and should not ignore the calls from those at immediate risk of sea level rise to line the pockets of fossil fuel companies. We will not let you silence Indigenous voices. Let’s be clear, expect criticism; we have no time to waste in securing a liveable future.
Japan Greenwashing Tactic
Not satisfied with receiving a Fossil last year as world leaders in providing public finance for fossil fuels, Japan is back with another strong showing as a runner-up on today’s podium. They want to appear greener than green with two initiatives that they claim “contribute to global decarbonization” according to Prime Minister Kishida, but we see straight through their attempts to extend the life of coal and gas domestically and throughout Asia.
It’s clear that this is nothing more than greenwashing of hydrogen and ammonia co-firing with fossil fuels, which would keep thermal power plants running far into the future. This fails to meaningfully reduce emissions, jeopardises the decarbonization of Japan’s energy and any possibility of phasing out fossil fuels.
Japan’s Prime Minister has been making a sales pitch through the Asia Zero Emissions Community (AZEC) initiative for Southeast Asia to keep their coal and gas plants running using the hydrogen and ammonia co-firing technology. This push to lock in fossil fuel-based energy across the continent is delaying the transition from fossil fuels to renewables, adding hurdles to achieving the global goal of tripling renewables.
US’s Misplaced Finance
Unsurprisingly we have a bone to pick with the US, they earn a runners-up spot for their priorities when it comes to climate FINANCE.
The US, aka the ‘Belligerent Burden Shirker’, comes third due to its abysmal pledge of $17.5 million to the Loss and Damage Fund… we think the US might have confused million with billion… a mere pittance from the largest historical emitter. The US prioritises fueling conflict over climate, through excessive military spending and tripling its nuclear energy capacity by 2050, rather than funding relief for unavoidable climate impacts.
As it allocates $38 billion on military aid for Israel, and over $60 billion towards the war in Ukraine, this paltry contribution to help heal climate wounds is the height of hypocrisy. From islands sinking under rising seas to families retreating from advancing deserts, this nominal Loss and Damage donation in the face of an expanding price tag for the US military global misadventures adds a particularly hurtful quality to the injustice. We award this fossil for the US to look in the mirror and reflect on its allocation of funds.
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