Fund to compensate developing nations for climate change is unfinished business at COP28

An injured man is carried in Blantyre, Malawi, Monday, March 13, 2023, in the aftermath of Cyclone Freddy. This years COP28 in Dubai is likely to see more discussion about compensation for developing nations harmed by climate change. (AP Photo/Thoko Chikondi, File)

NEW DELHI – Sunil Kumar watched helplessly in July as his home and 14 others were washed away by intense monsoon rains lashing the Indian Himalayas.

“All my life’s work vanished in an instant. Starting over feels impossible, especially with my three children relying on me,” said Kumar, a waste collector in the village of Bhiuli, in the mountainous state of Himachal Pradesh.

This year's monsoon season in India was devastating, with local governments estimating 428 deaths and more than $1.42 billion in property damage in the region. But India was just one of many developing nations to suffer from extreme weather made worse or more likely by climate change, caused largely by greenhouse gas emissions that result from the burning of fossil fuels.

Tropical storm Daniel hammered Libya with massive flooding in September, and Cyclone Freddy battered several African nations early in the year. Activists say all three disasters show how poorer nations, which historically have contributed less to climate change because they have emitted fewer planet-warming gases than developed countries, are often hit hardest by the impacts of global warming.