Prof. Yossi Loya represented the Israel Academy’s Interdisciplinary Experts Committee for Examining the Climate in Israel at COP 27, the UN Climate Change Conference, held in Sharm el-Sheikh in November 2022. Prof. Loya participated in a COP side event entitled Adapting Our Coral Reefs to Climate Change: The Latest Science and Management.

 

Prof. Loya’s lecture included a survey of the current situation of coral reef destruction resulting from global warming, as well as a historical survey of the state of the coral reefs in Eilat over the past 50 years.

In his lecture, Prof. Loya called upon Israel’s new government to consider stopping the planned joint project of Israel and the United Arab Emirates to transport crude oil from the Persian Gulf states to the port of Eilat and from there to the ports of the Mediterranean Sea and Europe. The project exposes the Gulf of Eilat, the shores of the Sinai Peninsula and their coral reefs – along with the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and the pipeline’s overland route – to spills, accidents, and sabotage.

 

The COP is the annual conference of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), whose goal is to coordinate worldwide efforts to prevent global warming and adapt to the climate crisis. Tens of thousands of representatives attend the conference, which is held in a different geographical region each year.