Beyond numbers: COP29 side event advocates for justice-driven climate finance

Harjeet Singh, senior advisor at CAN International and a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty representative, stressed the need for climate financing that addresses systemic injustices affecting frontline communities. “The faith community, along with health communities, has such a deep connection with individuals,” Singh said. “We can see things beyond challenges that make climate change easier to connect with. It’s about why we need to save the planet, what things we’re doing wrong, and why we need to hold leaders accountable. This fight is massively around numbers, and we, as civil society, are demanding $5 billion in real finance—not just loans, but resources that truly support communities facing climate impacts.”

Sabine Minninger, climate policy advisor at Bread for the World in Germany, emphasized the need for structural change and innovative financing mechanisms. “The money is there; it just has to be used in the right way, collected in a fair and just manner,” Minninger explained. “We need climate finance that is new and based on the polluter-pays principle. This must be additional to other aid so that climate justice can finally flow to the people who need it most.”

Representing Indigenous perspectives, Hindou Omari Ibrahim, president of the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad, called out the lack of direct financial access for Indigenous communities. “For Indigenous peoples, it’s not just about where the money is but how it’s accessible and whether it truly supports us,” she stated. “Out of the $1.7 billion promised for Indigenous peoples, only 2% has actually reached our communities.”

Athena Peralta, director of the WCC Commission on Climate Justice and Sustainable Development, highlighted WCC’s longstanding advocacy for tax justice to fund effective climate action. “Since 2019, the World Council of Churches has been campaigning for tax justice, including wealth taxes, to mobilize the resources needed for climate action,” Peralta explained. “We call on the super-rich to contribute their fair share, not just to address runaway inequality but because their massive investments in polluting industries drive the climate crisis. Sustainable climate finance must be based on the principle that polluters pay.”

The event closed with a collective call for policymakers to center climate finance policies on justice, equity, and direct access for the most vulnerable.