Prime Minister in Glasgow: “Nation of climate innovation” ready to “pave the way” on solutions

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GLASGOW, Scotland – Israel will make its greatest contribution to the global war on climate change by harnessing the technological creativity and inventiveness of its people to find solutions “that have not yet even been imagined,” Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told world leaders at the United Nations COP26 climate conference in Glasgow on Monday.

Behavioral change to reduce emissions would only take the world so far, he said.

“If we want to move the needle, we need to contribute Israel’s most precious source of energy: the energy and brainpower of our people,” according to Bennett. “This is what fuels our innovation and ingenuity. This is where Israel can really make a difference ”.

“We are less than a third the size of Scotland. Our carbon footprint may be small, but our impact on climate change can be powerful, ”he continued, announcing that he has set up a task force called the Green Sandbox to provide funding for climate technology initiatives and cut red tape.

On Sunday, Bennett told reporters that the government would set up a special fund to encourage local tech entrepreneurs to invest in green technology.

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“Israel may be 60 percent deserted, but we managed to make it flourish,” Bennett told leaders in Glasgow on Monday. “We may be in one of the driest places on earth, but we have managed to become the number one country in the world in water innovation.”

He added: “As the country with the largest number of startups per capita in the world, we must channel our efforts to save the world … Israel can become the ‘nation of climate innovation’ and we are ready to pave the way.”

Bennett appealed to entrepreneurs and innovators in Israel and around the world to be “game changers” and to “help save our planet”.

“Instead of creating another advertised app, why not launch startups that help you solve this global threat?” churches.

Bennett said that in reducing emissions, Israel was “at the beginning of a revolution”.

He cited the government’s recent decision to set a net zero emissions target by 2050 and its 100-step plan to get there as evidence that Israel “is currently doing more to promote clean energy and reduce greenhouse gases. than at any other time in our country “. history.”

Coal will be phased out by 2025, he said, citing a target set by the previous government led by Benjamin Netanyahu.

“As we gather here in Glasgow today, we know that history will judge our generation’s response to this [climate] threat, not by how ambitious we are, but by the actions we take, “said Bennett.

“As we work to protect people today, we will also work for tomorrow’s resilience, where our children will breathe cleaner air, drink cleaner water, and live in a world that treats the planet better than we do.”

Bennett is leading a 120-strong Israeli delegation to the COP26 talks in Glasgow.

On Friday, Bennett and Energy Minister Karine Elharrar announced that Israel will join the growing number of countries pledging to be carbon neutral by 2050.

The move overturns the previous government’s policy, announced in April, which envisaged reducing carbon emissions by 80% across the board by 2050 and emissions from the electricity sector in particular by up to 85%.

In addition to addressing the climate crisis, Bennett met with a number of world leaders at the Glasgow conference, including Frenchman Emanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Australian Scott Morrison. Meetings were Bennett’s first with those leaders since he took office in June.

The Israeli delegation will leave the conference on Tuesday evening.

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