Policymakers around the world continue experimenting with different approaches to produce more renewable power in an attempt to achieve their obligations within the framework of the UNFCCC. On the one hand, wind and solar energy projects are on the agendas of numerous governments worldwide. On the other hand, producing renewable energy requires developing electricity infrastructure at the same pace. Consequently, electricity grids are currently evolving into a significant impediment and bottleneck to the swift implementation of renewable energy generation.

Presided over by Azerbaijan—a constitutionally secular republic whose population is nominally Muslim (the majority is Shia, the minority is Sunni)—COP29 will be the most important and inclusive diplomatic event of 2024: the flagship annual conference of the most complex multilateral undertaking in the history of humanity. Although the conference’s central issue will be climate finance, several others will also have pride of place. Of these, most in one way or another will have something to do with water. As a country suffering from water scarcity whilst also being a keystone state in one of the world’s keystone regions, the Azerbaijani presidency of COP29 is well within its rights to emphasize the importance of the sanctity of nature and, within this theological framework, of the sanctity of water and the broader obligation of humanity to be a responsible steward of the natural environment.

Climate change is the supreme challenge of our times, poised for human civilization. Its facets are diverse: the rise of temperatures, trending natural disasters and enduring weather extremes, droughts and floods, fluctuations of the sea level and hydrographic regimes, disstressed ecosystem balances, and other aberrations. Climate change affects human health and demography, increases food and water insecurity, accelerates environmental degradation, shrinks biodiversity, and produces other similar effects.

Encouraging youth involvement in the formulation of policies and agendas should be in the interest of policymakers: doing so could result in the offering of novel concepts and creative solutions to address climate issues, as well as improve accountability and transparency. This IDD Analytical Policy Brief will overview Azerbaijan’s climate commitments and analyze survey results on how Azerbaijani youth perceive climate change and their own role in tackling the climate crisis.

Azerbaijan became one of the signatories to the Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency Pledge, which aims to triple the world’s installed renewable energy production capacity and double the global average annual rate of energy efficiency improvements by 2030. The country has a significant technical potential for green energy evaluated at 135 GW for onshore and 157 GW for offshore sources. The economic potential of renewable energy sources is estimated at 27 GW, including 3 GW of wind energy and 23 GW of solar energy. The country is committed to substantially raising the share of renewable energy sources in overall installed electricity capacity, to reach 30 percent by 2030. In recent years, Azerbaijan has undertaken several essential steps in that direction, including the establishment of the Azerbaijan Renewable Energy Agency in September 2020 and the adoption of a law in May 2021 on the use of renewable energy sources in the production of electricity.

While ‘climate diplomacy’ is commonly employed in discussions related to climate negotiations, this IDD Analytical Policy Brief introduces the term ‘methane diplomacy’ to underscore the significance of addressing emissions from this specific greenhouse gas (GHG). According to scientists, more than 25 percent of the global warming that has occurred since the preindustrial era is caused by methane. Present scientific consensus indicates that one of the main sources of atmospheric methane is the fossil fuel sector, mostly as a result of leaks from the extraction of gas and oil. When burning, coal emits 75 percent more CO2 (carbon dioxide) per unit of energy than gas.