You have heard people talking about COP26 but do you want to know about it? So, you have come to the right place. In this article we are telling you about what is COP26 and why is it so important?
What Is The History of COPs?
The COPs stand for "Conference of the parties”. The history of 'COPs' in the context of global climate change emerged that has signed the United Nations Framework Convention on climate change (UNFCCC).
The UNFCCC was founded in 1992 so as to establish a world forum for collaboration on climate change and to stop dangerous anthropogenetic interference with the climate system.
Every year COP is hosted by different countries but the first COP meeting was held in Berlin (Germany) in 1995 after a critical mass of countries confirms the climate convention. It was a milestone and set the level for the Kyoto Protocol 2 years later, which needed wealthy, business countries to curb emissions.
What Is Meant By COP26?
Every year representatives from every country come together to negotiate action on international climate change in what is called a COP. COP26 is the 26th climate change COP and is hosted by the UK in partnership with Italy government.
Effectively each nation, every country in the world is involved, giving a total of 197 mortal parties that agreed to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at a meeting in 1992.
That year the United States and a few alternative countries confirm the 1994 written agreement to combat “dangerous human interference with the climate system” and stabilize levels of greenhouse emissions in the atmosphere.
The meeting is the 26th “conference of the parties” to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, a landmark 1994 treaty under which countries promised to keep away from dangerous climate change.
The 26th COP was originally scheduled to take place in Glasgow in the UK last November 2020 but was delayed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
What Will Be Happening at COP26?
Government officials are expected to discuss technical issues in the first week of the summit, including carbon credits, funding for countries at risk of climate change, and nature-based solutions.
The world is warming due to human-made fossil fuel emissions Extreme weather events related to climate change, such as heat waves, floods, and forest fires intensify.
The past years have been the warmest on record, and governments agree that collective action is urgently needed. They all agreed in 2015 to make changes to keep global warming going and try to raise the target below 1.5 degrees Celsius. Countries also promised to release new versions of their national climate plans, known as the Paris Agreement, by the end of 2020.
When And Where Will COP26 Be Held?
The UK and Italian governments will host the COP26 climate summit conference in Glasgow (Scotland) from 31st October to 12th November 2021.
The COPs are attended by international leaders, Prime ministers, and negotiators but also by representatives from civil society, business, global organizations, and the media persons.
What will be decided at COP26 (Glasgow)?
Some countries will set out their plans and goals to reduce greenhouse emissions before the summit starts. So, we should always get a sense of whether we tend to be on track beforehand.
But some other statements could include:
- Adapt to protect communities and natural habitats
- Securing many people from the impacts of climate change, like funding coastal-defense systems.
- Cutting down a few trees
- Work together to deliver
- Mobilise finance
Why is COP26 So Important?
This year’s COP26 is the most important and a couple of key benchmarks climate meeting since 2015 once the Paris Agreement was launched. Countries are currently expected to agree on a set of strong tips for the implementation of the agreement. These include rules on how to measure and report every country’s carbon emissions and the way to extend ambition over time.
At the meeting, countries will be expected to lift their climate ambitions, building on their current climate pledges, or across the country Determined Contributions (NDCs).
There’s also been tons of science and research since we’ve last held a COP that illustrates the urgency of acting as quickly as possible on climate.
Conclusion
In this article we told you about what Is COP26 and Why Is It So Important? So, we will explore what to expect from the COP26 negotiations to justify the manner the conference proceedings and encompassing activities will occur in Glasgow. What will be happening at COP26?
References:
https://www.chathamhouse.org/2021/09/what-cop26-and-why-it-important
https://www.nytimes.com/article/what-is-cop26-climate-change-summit.html#link-5c8535ee
https://www.euronews.com/green/2021/10/28/what-is-cop26-and-why-is-it-so-important