Today’s news from the COP 26 Climate Talks in Glasgow Scotland
Can we count on promises?
While you were sleeping.
Glasgow, Scotland is the rendezvous point for the world leaders to present their actions to tackle climate change at United Nations Climate Summit known as COP26. It has been said that this meeting is the “last best hope” for the goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. With a low-key opening ceremony on 31 October 2021 talks began and continue on through 12 November as civil society and NGO’s also gather to urge governments to take solid and verifiable action.
Let’s start with the basics,
what is COP26? (from UN News)
“To keep it simple, COP26 is the biggest and most important climate-related conference on the planet.
In 1992, the UN organised a major event in Rio de Janeiro called the Earth Summit, in which the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted.
In this treaty, nations agreed to "stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere” to prevent dangerous interference from human activity on the climate system. Today, the treaty has 197 signatories.
Since 1994, when the treaty entered into force, every year the UN has been bringing together almost every country on earth for global climate summits or “COPs”, which stands for ‘Conference of the Parties’.
This year should have been the 27th annual summit, but thanks to COVID-19, we’ve fallen a year behind due to last year’s postponement – hence, COP26.”
“Without decisive action, we are gambling away our last chance to – literally - turn the tide”, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said ahead of the meeting.
The U.S. is back in the game after the Trump administration turned its back against the rest of the world on this matter.
African countries bear the brunt of climate change while contributing little to it.
So far more than 100 countries have signed up to a global methane pledge, agreeing to cut emissions by 30% by the end of the decade. And according to the BBC “100 world leaders have promised to end and reverse deforestation by 2030, in the COP26 climate summit's first major deal.”
Leading up to the Glasgow Climate Change Conference (COP 26) The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has released a global assessment of the marine pollution crisis.
What do we need to achieve at COP26?
From UKCOP26
https://ukcop26.org/cop26-goals/
https://ukcop26.org/
South Africa to call on rich nations to do more at COP26
https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/south-africa-call-rich-nations-do-more-cop26-2021-10-22/
US and EU announce 'game-changing' methane plan
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-59125188
COP26: World leaders promise to end deforestation by 2030
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-59088498
Ambassador on how U.S. will respond to climate change differently following COP26