What is COP, and why should you be paying attention during COP29?

What is COP?

 COP stands for ‘Conference of the Parties’, where parties refers to governments. They are convened annually, under the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change (UNFCC), a multilateral treaty adopted in 1992. This year’s COP will be called COP29, as it is the 29th conference of the parties of the UNFCC. The first COP took place in Berlin in 1995. At each conference, progress from the last year is published, and negotiations for the next round of targets, including emissions reductions, are set in line with the Paris Climate Agreement.

What is the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement? 

The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change, that was agreed at COP21 in Paris. Crucially, the agreement sets long-term goals to guide all nations to substantially reduce global greenhouse gas emissions to hold global temperature increase to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, recognising that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change.

Why we need COP

The world is already grappling with the severe impacts of a warming planet, from record-breaking heatwaves to disastrous floods, to less headline-grabbing yet insidious changes that impact ecosystems and thus biodiversity, crop yields, etc. over time.

Many governments are investing enormous sums in emergency-response measures to deal with the aftermath of such issues. Climate disasters devastate the lives of millions each year, leading to pressures such as climate-induced migration, as the homelands of refugees become uninhabitable. 

Yet, current action is inadequate to the scale of the crisis.

At present, there is no credible pathway to limit warming to 1.5 degrees with the latest data showing that the world is on track for a temperature rise of between 2.4 and 2.6 degrees by the end of the century

Fiona Reynolds, chief executive of the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI)

What to look out for at this year’s COP:

The ‘finance’ COP: We urgently need more global climate finance to be pledged towards adaptation and mitigation efforts. One big thing to watch at this year’s COP is the new agreement for global climate finance, the first one in 15 years. This deal will set out the amount of finance that will be provided to help scale up action and support at-risk communities on the frontlines of climate change.

Finance is the “ultimate enabler of a Net Zero transition” - necessary for meeting the goals set out in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement (The Carbon Trust). Trillions of dollars must be mobilised to support less economically-developed countries, that historically have contributed very little to excess emissions, in not only dealing with the consequences of climate change, but to develop without relying on fossil fuels. 

The willingness of the historically high-emitting countries “to pay for the transition is seen by some as an ‘acid test’ for the seriousness of their commitment to tackling climate change at a global scale” (The Carbon Trust). According to Chatham House, little progress has been made in the run-up to COP29. “Parties disagree on who should pay, how much should be paid, what forms the funding should take and how the funds should be accessed”. 

The previous climate finance goal “of $100 billion per year from developed to developing countries between 2020-25, was symbolic (being a fraction of the sum actually needed) and contentious (developed countries did not meet the target until 2022, and then only with accusations of double-counting)”, says commentary from Chatham House.

Summary 

COP isn’t without its issues – it’s mired by controversies around fossil fuel lobbyists and goals left open to interpretation, and thus, inadequate action. At COP28 in Dubai, there were nearly 2,500 industry lobbyists, a record number, present at the conference – aiming to influence the outcome of the negotiations.

Yet, it’s also the only space we have like it - where countries come together around climate to create solutions that will impact all of our lives. It’s a conference unseen anywhere else in the political arena, and as such, we must maintain some confidence in its ability to deliver positive change.

Want to learn more about climate issues, and influence policy?

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“Communities worldwide are facing the impacts of climate change and are searching for practical solutions that balance utility, sustainability, and equity. Addressing these issues requires global approaches that consider the interconnected nature of both the challenges and their solutions.

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Dr Persis Taraporevala, Programme Director, MSc Global Environment and Sustainability

References:

• United Nations: How COPS are organised
• World Resources Institute: Key elements
• Carbon Trust: How can COP29 accelerate climate action?
• United Nations Climate Action: 1.5C what it means
• The Nature Conservancy: COP29 Guide
• Chatham House: Azerbaijan's climate leadership challenge
• Chatham House: What is COP29 and why is it important?
• Top 1000 funds: Sustainability
• Global witness: Everything you need to know about COP
• World Economic Forum: COP29 Why it matters?