In response to my recent article on Malta's climate policy that was published in The Malta Independent, facebook commentator David Cilia Vincenti said that "nothing Malta does or doesn't do will make any difference to climate change".
While Mr Cilia Vincenti has a point on Malta's emissions in absolute terms, I beg to differ from a policy perspective. Reasons for this include:
1. As a small island state Malta may suffer disproportionate impacts of climate change.
2. As a small island state which uniquely happens to be an EU member, Malta has a window of opportunity and the duty to speak up on the climate change question. To do this we need to match rhetoric with action. We cannot expect ambitious EU climate policy if we do not do our part.
3. Adopting a green new deal can in itself be an opportunity for Malta in terms of sustainable policy making.
In the meantime the following news links may be useful: