More than 25,000 people will come from 196 countries at the end of this month, to a single city: Glasgow, Scotland. There, from October 31st to November 12th, they will have the task of finding ways to combat the climate crisis, at a meeting called COP26.
Usually annual, this year’s meeting comes after a hiatus caused by the Covid pandemic. The conference comes under pressure to deliver more ambitious goals and greater effort to meet them.
That’s because the most recent report by the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), released a few weeks ago, showed that the window to stop global warming as promised by its participants is practically closed.
The event promises to attract the attention, presence and demonstrations of groups of environmental activists, in which younger currents stand out, such as Fridays For Future, led by the Swedish Greta Thunberg.
But what is a COP after all? When it started? What are the main conflicts? What results have you produced? Here are some of these questions.
What is a COP?
It is a conference of 156 countries, plus the European Union, to discuss the practical rules of the Climate Convention, an agreement signed within the scope of the United Nations to combat climate change.
The acronym stands for Conference of the Parties to the Climate Convention, and it takes place annually. In 2020, because of the coronavirus pandemic, it was delayed.
Since when do COPs happen?
Since 1995, the year following the entry into force of the Climate Convention. The objective is to set rules to implement the fight against the climate crisis and update the results of these efforts.
At this first COP, the signatories agreed to negotiate a legal instrument —a protocol— to implement the convention.
How do COPs work?
Negotiators discuss specific themes in groups, such as transparency, finance or adaptation, with the aim of delivering a proposal for a consensual text. This step usually takes a week or takes a few more days.
In the middle of the second week, ministers, who have mandates from governments, meet to try to resolve issues where there was no consensus and conclude negotiations.
On the last day of the meeting, the consensus text, or agreement, is presented, in addition to other decisions that have emerged during the COP.
What are the main blocks in the negotiations?
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European Union – the most aggressive group in decarbonization targets and measures
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Umbrella (umbrella) – formed by the USA, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Russia and Norway, they usually block initiatives that make many concessions to emerging countries. Norway, however, although a large oil producer, has proposed ambitious targets and financed poorer countries
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Environmental Integrity (OIG) – formed by OECD countries that are neither in the European Union nor in Umbrella: Mexico, Korea, Switzerland, Lichtenstein and Monaco. Intended to be a bridge between developed and developing countries
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G77 + China – formed by 133 developing nations, including Brazil, South Africa and China. Its focus is to get more funding from developed countries. Within the G77 there are at least eight more active subgroups, in addition to smaller ones:
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Basic – G77 subgroup formed by emerging Brazil, South Africa, India and China
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small islands – 40 nations that are at risk of disappearing because of rising sea levels; defend more ambitious goals and press for compensation for irreversible losses and damages
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LDCs – 48 least developed countries from Africa, Southeast Asia and Oceania
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Like-Minded Developing Countriese – includes Saudi Arabia, Belarus, Philippines, Egypt, Pakistan, Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua and others and advocates that imposing environmental commitments on the poorest countries is imperialism for the richest
What landmark decisions have already been made at COPs?
The most important to date was 2015 in France, which produced the Paris Agreement: a project to reform the structure of the world economy, to halt climate change and avoid the catastrophes it can produce.
Other COPs, however, produced advances before Paris.
In Bali (Indonesia), in 2007, China agreed to negotiate voluntary targets that were measurable, and in Cancun (Mexico), in 2010, the Green Climate Fund was created and the goal of keeping global warming in the year was defined. maximum 2°C above the temperature of the pre-industrial era.
The COP in Durban (South Africa) in 2011 was the event that formalized the need for mandatory targets for all countries, and in Lima, in 2014, several of the points approved later in Paris were agreed upon.
Can COP26 go down in history as a landmark?
The main practical result of this COP will be to adjust the rules of the carbon market, to make it work.
Another political objective is to obtain from countries more ambitious targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and more concrete plans on how to accelerate the transition to a greener economy, including financing conditions.
Timeline of climate conferences
1992 – The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio-92 (or Eco-92, or Earth Summit) takes place in Rio de Janeiro. Considered a success, the agreement produced three UN conventions, a declaration on forests and a letter of intent on sustainable development, Agenda 21. The text of the Climate Convention, also called the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC) was signed at Rio-92 and entered into force in 1994.
1995 – COP1 – Berlin (Germany) – Produced a mandate to negotiate a legal instrument to implement the Climate Convention
1996 – COP2 – Geneva (Switzerland)
1997 – COP3 – Kyoto (Japan) – The principle was established that all countries have a responsibility to fight the climate crisis, but those that developed before have a responsibility to bear higher costs and more capacity. The principle became known as CBDR (acronym for common but different responsibilities in English), and established targets for rich countries in the period 2008-2012. The protocol, however, was not approved in the US, the largest issuer, making the agreement ineffective.
1998 – COP4 – Buenos Aires (Argentina)
1999 – COP5 – Bonn (Germany)
2000 – COP6 – The Hague (Netherlands)
2001 – COP6-2 – Bonn (Germany)
2001 – COP7 – Marrakech (Morocco)
2002 – COP8 – New Delhi (India)
2003 – COP9 – Milan (Italy)
2004 – COP10 – Buenos Aires (Argentina)
2005 – COP11 – Montreal (Canada)
2006 – COP12 – Nairobi (Kenya)
2007 – COP13 – Bali (Indonesia) – Produced the Bali Road Map: over the next two years, the parties to the Kyoto Protocol agreed to negotiate its extension and an increase in shares; Climate Convention countries that did not participate in the protocol, such as China, agreed to negotiate voluntary targets that were measurable and verifiable. These commitments would be valid for the period from 2013 to 2020.
2008 – COP16 – Poznan (Poland)
2009 – COP15 – Copenhagen (Denmark) – The conference was supposed to produce an agreement based on the negotiations started in Bali, but failed, because the US and China declared themselves unprepared to commit themselves obligatorily to actions and goals, as Europe wanted. Leaders wrote a policy statement, known as the Copenhagen Accord, providing for unencumbered voluntary targets, but it has not been officially adopted.
2010 – COP16 – Cancún (Mexico) – The Green Climate Fund, the main climate financing mechanism, was created. Commitments made in Copenhagen were formalized, such as that the goals belong not only to developed countries, but also to emerging ones. The objective of maintaining heating at a maximum of 2ºC above the temperature of the pre-industrial era was also defined, with an indicative target of a maximum of 1.5ºC.
2011 – COP17 – Durban (South Africa) – Produced the greatest advance in negotiations since the Kyoto Protocol: the need for a universal agreement was formalized, with mandatory targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions for all countries in the world . The program was to close the agreement in 2015 and put it into effect from 2020.
2012 – COP18 – Warsaw (Poland) – An international mechanism for damages was launched, which would compensate the most vulnerable countries (mainly islands) for the impacts of climate change to which it is no longer possible to adapt. REDD+ was created, a guide to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.
2013 – COP19 – Doha (Qatar) – Kyoto agreement extended to 2020
2014 – COP20 – Lima (Peru) – The elements of the future Paris Agreement were discussed: mitigation of climate change, adaptation, financing, an international mechanism that allows verifying and charging for actions, losses and damages, and a long-term plan. It was defined that emission reduction targets would be set by each country, and not imposed from the top down, as in Kyoto.
2015 – COP21 – Paris – The Paris Agreement establishes:
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the commitment to stabilize global warming “well below 2 º Celsius” in relation to the temperature of the pre-industrial period, “making efforts” to stabilize it at a maximum of 1.5 º C.
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the adoption of determined contribution targets (NDCs) by all countries, valid from 2020 and periodically revised
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the expectation that all countries present long-term strategies to achieve climate neutrality (balance between greenhouse gas emissions and removals) by the middle of this century
2016 – COP22 – Marrakech (Morocco) – Countries have started to define the rules for implementing the Paris Agreement, but the election of Donald Trump to the Presidency of the United States and the subsequent dismantling of the American environmental policy put the commitments under threat.
2017 – COP23 – Bonn (Germany)
2018 – COP24 – Katowice (Poland) – The rules on communication and regular accountability of the Paris Agreement were established, in addition to the alignment between investments and the consideration of damages and losses. But the attempt to establish rules on the carbon market was blocked by negotiators in Brazil
2019 – COP25 – Madrid (Spain) – Brazil once again blocked an agreement on the carbon market, in addition to preventing mention of oceans and human rights in the texts discussed.
2021 – COP26 – Glasgow (Scotland)
Sources: Climate Observatory; UNFCCC
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