COP are the initials for Conference of the Parties. The Conference of the Parties (COP), made up of all the States “Parties”, constitutes the supreme body of the Convention. It meets annually in world conferences in which decisions are adopted to achieve the objectives of combating climate change
The first COP was held in 1979 in Geneva, Switzerland. Year after year many things are promised and the countries sign commitments that many times are not fulfilled.
The results of the COP26 climate summit in late 2021 were not to everyone’s liking, but the talks served to focus the world’s attention on the steps now needed to avert catastrophe. 2020 tied with 2016 for the hottest year on record, and despite the Paris Agreement’s stated goal on climate change to limit warming to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, requiring countries to voluntarily reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. gases: the world is well on its way to passing that threshold.
Even 1.5°C warming is likely to lead to severe environmental impacts and widespread displacement.
The Paris Agreement emerges at COP21
The Paris Agreement was negotiated at the annual United Nations climate summit in 2015 and provides a means for participating countries to respond to the environmental, social and economic effects of climate change.
The agreement was an important milestone because it achieved consensus on the need to limit global average temperature rise to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels. 181 countries ratified the agreement and made initial commitments, called nationally determined contributions, to reduce their own emissions and help regions most vulnerable to climate change adapt.
One of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, adopted in 2015 to guide development over the next 15 years, encourages countries to incorporate their climate commitments into national policies and urges companies to decarbonize their operations and supply chains. . In addition, the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol (on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer) strengthens the Paris Agreement by avoiding the equivalent of an estimated one billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year (about 40 thousand million tons of annual emissions currently result from human activity).
Public commitments targeting greenhouse gas emissions have been gaining momentum, albeit unevenly. Unified progress on global climate goals took a hit in 2017, when the Trump Administration announced its intention to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement at the earliest date allowed, which, ironically, was a day after the 2020 US presidential election.
The Biden Administration quickly brought the US back into the deal. A new round of revised reduction commitments is expected in 2022, following a bittersweet COP26 climate summit in Glasgow in 2019, which will indicate how much real progress can be made.
The COP26 Climate Pact includes provisions aimed at increasing transparency and accountability, with countries increasingly expected to report on their actions and progress made on climate change mitigation, adaptation measures and support. related that is given or received.
COP27 is expected to take place in November 2022 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, where campaigners hope to raise more awareness of the severe climate impacts being felt in Africa, and more related support pledged and delivered.
