What to expect from the COP26 meeting

What to expect from the COP26 meeting

Young people hold hands during climate activist Greta Thunberg’s speech at COP25.Photo: John Englert

Tackling human-induced climate change and its impacts will require tremendous efforts and global cooperation. That is why, almost every year since 1995, delegates from all over the world have gathered at his COP meetings. Last year’s conference was canceled due to the pandemic.

The COP26 conference, scheduled to take place in Glasgow from October 31st to November 12th, is touted as “the world’s greatest last chance to control runaway climate change.” A science and policy expert from the Columbia Climate School will attend and speak at his COP26. State of the Planet met with some of them to learn more about the conference and this year’s agenda.

What is COP26 and why is it important?

COP26 is the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference. “COP” stands for “Conference of Parties” and refers to the countries that have signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

COP meetings bring together representatives of countries that have agreed to a framework to negotiate ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit the deadly impacts of climate change.

Past COP meetings have led to the creation of the Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty in which many countries agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This was the most ambitious climate treaty before the Paris Agreement was negotiated at COP21. At the 2015 COP meeting in Paris, nearly 200 countries pledged to take important actions to keep climate change below 2 degrees. Subsequent COP meetings have focused on discussing the details of the Paris Agreement, and COP26 will continue to work towards achieving the treaty’s goals.

“They are working towards implementation,” explained John Farlow, director of the International Institute for Climate and Society at Columbia University. “How do you measure the success or failure of your commitments? What is the right mix of public and private funding to deliver on your promises? What is your commitment to transparency? It’s definitely in the details.”

Who attends COP meetings and what happens there?

COP meetings bring together representatives of world leaders, citizens, scientists, businesses, governments, non-profit organizations, and a variety of other groups. The result, Farlow said, was a cross between a research conference and a comic-con. As a negotiator, speaker and observer, he has attended some 12 of his COP meetings.

“Other members of civil society are there to offer their expertise and input. [the negotiation] Jason Bordoff, co-founder of the Columbia Climate School and founding director of Columbia’s Center for Global Energy Policy, said: “Many individuals representing Columbia University will be coming to Glasgow. As a world leader in climate change research, policy and solutions, Columbia’s influence will be felt at his COP26.”

Climate activists attend COP25 in Madrid, Spain.Photo: Friends of Earth International

Before each COP meeting, the parties will decide on the main issues that will have to be negotiated. In an actual meeting, the Conference of the Parties would initiate negotiations and finish them, Farlow explained, during which he would have five or six meetings to discuss the topics assigned to him in two weeks. are done at the same time. The largest and most important meetings take place in huge rooms with at least two seats in every country, with space for observers at the ends of the room. Some meetings are smaller with fewer seats for observers, and others are limited to national representatives only. Some sessions are broadcast internally on the web or television, others are not.

An all-black Santa Claus walks around the COP15 conference in Copenhagen in 2009. Photo: Mélody Braun

“In parallel with the negotiations, it’s kind of like a trade fair,” Farrow said, showcasing technologies and solutions for companies and organizations to reduce emissions and adapt to climate impacts. A man walking the floor in a dirty polar bear suit to emphasize the loss of habitat from melting ice, and a darkened Santa Claus to emphasize the fact that coal is the dirtiest fuel. Mr Farlow said he sometimes sees people wearing suits. A negative award, called The Fossil, is given daily to the country’s negotiators who made the most unhelpful comments or objections during the meeting. “The United States has acquired a lot of fossils,” Farlow said.

In addition to conferences and trade fairs, there are side events where people talk about their work and how they have solved specific problems related to climate change. Furlow and his colleague her Mélody Braun attend an event to discuss ways to bridge the gap between climate research and implementation. For example, how climate prediction can help farmers to improve yields and fight hunger. That is the goal of the Colombian Global Project “Adapting Agriculture for Today, Tomorrow” (ACToday) led by Furlow and Braun.

Find out more about Columbia Climate School events and activities at COP26.

What are your COP26 priorities and how are they different this year?

At this year’s conference, negotiators will focus on four goals detailed on the conference’s official website.

1. Ensure global net zero by mid-century and keep 1.5 degrees within reach. This requires countries to develop ambitious plans to reduce their emissions.
2. Adapt to protect communities and natural habitats.
3. Mobilize funds. Under the Paris Agreement, developed countries pledged $100 billion to finance climate change adaptation and emission reductions.
4. enhance collaboration By defining and agreeing the detailed rules of the Paris Agreement and accelerating action on climate change.

“A lot of the key issues going forward will be measuring how much progress we have made in reducing emissions, how we are keeping our funding commitments and helping countries, especially developing countries, to adapt.” explained Furlow.

“What sets this year’s conference apart from previous conferences is its urgency,” said Bordoff. “The window to address climate change is rapidly closing, and we see this conference as one of the last chances to secure a globally coordinated approach to limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. A lot of people look up to me.”

What are the challenges in achieving these goals?

When the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, participating countries agreed to plan to reduce their emissions and gradually set more ambitious targets. COP26 is the first time parties to the Convention are expected to step up their efforts, and this will likely prove difficult as many countries have not met their initial objectives. prize.

“I think it’s going to be bad news,” Farlow said. “When the United States announced its withdrawal, there was a huge sigh of frustration and many said, ‘What do you mean? In the face of it, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a certain amount of anxiety or frustration about trying to make progress.”

He added that the lack of action is particularly frustrating for developing countries that emit very little but face significant risks to their climate impacts. not and have little ability to resolve it. We need to rely on big powers and emitters to take action to bring about change.

To avoid the most devastating impacts of climate change, the international community must limit human-induced warming to below 1.5 degrees. Achieving that goal will require drastic measures to reach net-zero emissions by mid-century. To achieve these reductions, COP26 will emphasize the need to transition from coal to clean power, accelerate the transition to zero-emission vehicles, and protect and restore nature.

“What really matters is what actions we take to reduce our emissions and adapt to the climate change that is already happening,” Farlow said. “These actions he can commit to at the COP, but success or failure will be determined by what happens in each country when the COP is over. Political will is something between agreement and actual success.”