The COP “should belong to those who participate, not only those who organize it, but here in Egypt even participating is complicated”. Word of Andrea Pesce, who speaks from Sharm el-Sheikh – where Cop27 is being held, the first hosted by Egypt – and seems to paraphrase Massimo Troisi and his maxim on poetry. Roman entrepreneur, born in 1994, Pesce founded ZeroCO₂, specialized in reforestation “with a high social impact”. His company is a B-Corp, or a benefit company that meets key requirements for environmental and social sustainability (this year it was included in the top 5% B-Corp in the world in the governance category).
Andrea is in Sharm el-Sheikh to closely follow the most important climate negotiations of the year and try to network with colleagues from all over the world. She is telling her days about her on her Instagram profile of her. Tomorrow, Friday 11 November, he will be at the Italian Pavilion for the “Beyond Net-Zero” panel together with Alessandro Armillotta and Marco Armellino, CEO and President of AWorld, another Italian company (born in Piedmont) that has at heart the fight against the climate crisis.
Fish, how is the climate of these first days of Cop27? Many observers are concerned that the negotiations will lead to minimal progress, insufficient to face such a decisive phase.
«We know that there is a certain pessimism around this COP27 even before it started. I share the vision of those who would like a different conference, made up of fewer promises and more serious commitments. For my part, I came hoping to be amazed; in these first few days the thing that I have found positive is the centrality of the debate on loss and damage (loss and damage, ndr), which has been marginal for too many years “.
Andrea Pesce, on the right, in Sharm el-Sheikh in one of the Cop27 spaces
And the downside?
“There is so much inconsistency. Sharm el-Sheikh is an exclusive place, very expensive, where great meetings are held in which we talk and then eat foods from all over the world, where the most important figures arrive by private jet to talk about mitigation. I hear the noise of the planes passing over my head all the time. But I think that the COP is not only those who organize it, but also those who participate, those who talk about it, who creates a debate around it and I think that we can all make our small contribution. The problem is that in this COP there is not even this ».
Is the debate non-existent?
«The spaces for discussion are limited and in some cases even non-existent. I knew that I would not have found the streets full of people to demonstrate but I hoped to find many spaces for debate, here none of this is possible. I’m here with the girls and boys of Aworld, the app chosen by the United Nations for the ActNow campaign, what we say, in front of a buffet of imported food in a private side event organized by a large fund. And I wonder, “Shouldn’t governments be leading the transition?” Seen from this perspective, it almost seems that the world of business and finance is now a step forward. But this is a challenge that can only be won together ».
His company, ZeroCO₂, specializes in reforestation projects, mainly concentrated in Guatemala. As you said, however, this year the debates are centered on adaptation, on compensation for damages, on green finance. Are mitigation and offsetting taken for granted? Or have we already given up, the emergency is so uncontrollable that we just have to adapt to a crazy climate?
«Adaptation e loss and damage these are fundamental issues that are finally being actively discussed. But there is no doubt that repairing the damage will never be enough, if we do not intervene at the root. In this context, it is first of all necessary to question the causes of the damage and concretely act in a preventive manner. The paradigm must be reversed. We at ZeroCO₂ know it well: our projects often deal with environmental regeneration on deforested land. Acting in those places is fundamental both at an environmental and climatic level as well as at a cultural and social level ».
So how does compensation fit into this mechanism?
«Offsetting is inseparable from emission reduction targets and must also be evaluated for the accessory eco-system services it can offer. It must be one of the starting points and the useful lever for a concrete transition towards reducing emissions. Regarding the legislation on the subject, there are still no unified guidelines in this regard: in each state there are still many gray areas. The forms of compensation are also very different from each other. But there is no doubt that the nature based solutions have far more benefits than solutions tech-based».
So, simplifying as much as possible, is a tree the right tool to compensate?
«If the reforestation is done with attention and study, it offers many ecosystem services that go beyond the simple absorption of CO₂. Soil protection, increase in biodiversity, support for local populations and indigenous communities. Reforestation is too often understood as just a CO₂ compensation tool but in reality it generates many other benefits. It is important that the “net-zero” policies in Europe and in the world are more precise, more coherent on these issues: compensation, loss and damage, adaptation. Everything goes hand in hand and we need to be clear about the principles that guide climate action ».
These days the global south, the one that is least responsible for climate change but is most affected by it, finally seems to be more listened to than usual. You have a hybrid point of view, in balance between Italy and South America. We are doing enough, what’s missing?
«The discussions of these days are a beginning. Long last. But in these rooms of Cop27 I still see little diversity. Everyone has a face very similar to mine that I come from a European country. This is the litmus test to understand how and by whom the climate crisis and the relationship with the global South are managed. It is always the rich countries that decide what to do and with what to do it ».
What is missing then?
“I wonder when we will learn from our mistakes: from colonialism to 20th century imperialism. We continue to make the same mistakes, we think of solutions for places we do not know and where we have not lived. The South of the world no longer needs just money that rains from the sky, it needs a real interest in development, it needs concrete bridges between the universities of the south and those of the north. Humanities and scientific universities. Respect for their dignity and their sovereignty is needed. To imagine a fair and sustainable future, it is necessary to call every single actor involved to the tables where the decision is made, I do not yet see this at Cop27 ».
A question about Italy’s role: the new government is still wavering on the transition, as are the market and companies. What are the necessary ingredients?
“Courage, courage and more courage; this is what is needed today. In the specific case of this government, let me say that you also need awareness, vision and ideas. The first speech in the House of our new President seemed to diminish the climate or at least relegate it to a topic of interest to a few, especially young people. Meloni says that “we will undertake to protect it”, but does not put any basis on how. Words to the wind. Honestly, due to the low expectations I have in this government, it would already be very satisfying if we were able to stay in line with European directives and not step back. Meloni’s speech at COP27 seemed to go in this direction. I hope it is a clear line and no promises for the markets ».
In recent days, on social media, you have explained your doubts regarding the trip to Egypt, citing the scarce freedoms of the al-Sisi government and the many unresolved points of the Regeni case. She then she chose to go, because “freedom is participation”. What idea did you get there these days? Is there any talk of civil rights at Cop27?
«I am still convinced of the importance of being there and of showing what Cop27 is. I have my ethical and moral doubts, I live them every day. The space for activists and demonstrations is far from the COP’s decisive places. He is under the sun, small, sloppy, I think deliberately, to make any initiative complicated. But the spaces must be occupied: it is our task. In ZeroCO₂ we always pride ourselves on transparency in everything we do, being here these days is also this: we wanted to touch and tell the point of view of a company that has made social impact and respect for others its mission . There is no doubt that talking about civil rights in Egypt creates a very strong contrast, a continuous tension. There is nothing sustainable here, and next year will not be much different: the next COP is scheduled in Dubai. But also for this reason we have decided to put human rights at the center of our story about COP, and we are clamoring for the next appointments, those still to be assigned, to be hosted in those places where indigenous and local populations really live closely. ecological crisis. I often tell myself that we must be the change we want to see in the world. I try, we try ».