COP26 Climate Conference

Context

  • The UK will host the COP26 Climate Conference from October 31 to November 12. 

  • The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, is the 26th United Nations Climate Change conference. It is scheduled to be held in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, between 31 October and 12 November 2021, under the presidency of the United Kingdom
  • The event will see leaders from more than 190 countries, thousands of negotiators, researchers and citizens coming together to strengthen a global response to the threat of climate change.

About COP26 Climate Conference

  • It is a pivotal movement for the world to come together and accelerate the climate action plan.

    COP26 Climate Conference
    Credit: Wikipedia
  • This year marks the 26th Conference of Parties (thus the name COP26) and will be held in the Scottish Event Campus in Glasgow.
  • The conference comes months after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published its assessment report on Earth’s climate, highlighting heat waves, droughts, extreme rainfall and sea-level rise in the coming decades.

Formation of COP

  • The Conference of Parties comes under the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention (UNFCCC) which was formed in 1994. The UNFCCC was established to work towards “stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.”
  • It laid out a list of responsibilities for the member states which included:
    • Formulating measures to mitigate climate change
    • Cooperating in preparing for adaptation to the impact of climate change
    • Promoting education, training and public awareness related to climate change

COP1 to COP25

  • COP members have been meeting every year since 1995. The UNFCCC has 198 parties including India, China and the USA.
  • The first conference (COP1) was held in 1995 in Berlin.
  • At COP3 held in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997, the famous Kyoto Protocol was adopted.
  • It commits the member states to pursue limitation or reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
  • It entered into force on 16 February 2005 and there are 192 Parties in the Kyoto Protocol.
  • India hosted the eighth COP from October 23 to November 1, 2002 in New Delhi.
  • The conference laid out seven measures including, ‘strengthening of technology transfer… in all relevant sectors, including energy, transport…and the promotion of technological advances through research and development…and the strengthening of institutions for sustainable development.’
  • One of the most important conferences, COP21 took place from November 30 to December 11, 2015, in Paris, France. Member countries agreed to work together to ‘limit global warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.’

COP26 goals

According to the UNFCCC, COP26 will work towards four goals:

  1. Secure global net-zero by mid-century and keep 1.5 degrees within reach
  2. Adapt to protect communities and natural habitats
  3. Mobilise finance
  4. Work together to deliver

Source: Indian Express

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