AFRICA CLIMATE SUMMIT 2023: CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE SOCIAL DIMENSION

Climate change, driven by its effects of increasing greenhouse gas emissions, refers to systematic and long-term changes in the planet's climate system. These changes manifest themselves with various effects, such as the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and higher surface temperatures. Beyond being an environmental issue, climate change has political, economic, and social dimensions. The African continent, where poverty rates are high, is the region that feels the impacts of climate change most intensely in social and societal contexts. The purpose of addressing the social dimension of climate change is to minimize its adverse effects through a comprehensive approach. In this context, this study focuses on the social dimension of climate change and examines the Africa Climate Summit 2023 (ACS’23). The goal of this study is to shed light on the social dimension of climate change in Africa. This study argues that summits play a crucial role in setting agendas, addressing issues, and generating solutions within the framework of climate change. In this context, it seeks to answer questions such as; what the effects of climate change are in general, how it impacts societies on a social level, and what the positioning of this issue is in the ACS’23. To address these questions, a descriptive analysis method is employed, centering on the work of the United Nations (UN) and the African Union (AU), with a literature review. The results indicate that climate change has gained prominence in discourse at the global/regional level, but there have been delays in taking action. They also highlight the critical importance of sustainable policies and financial resources in addressing the (social) problems caused by climate change in the African continent. This study is expected to contribute to the academic literature -in Türkiye- by drawing more attention to the social issues in Africa as a result of climate change.