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Accelerating actions for climate solutions
The COP Global Stocktake has been evaluating whether countries have been making tangible progress on their Paris Agreement commitments eight years on, and their conclusion is widely expected to be “No”.
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Climate activists protest outside the Sharm el-Sheikh International Convention Center, during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Egypt's Red Sea resort city of the same name, on Nov. 17, 2022. (AFP/Ahmad Gharabli)
World leaders, including President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, are set to regroup at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), to be held in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12.
Gathering over 50,000 participants, including heads of state, government officials, business leaders, NGOs, academics, experts, youth and other non-state actors, the COP will address the climate crisis against a backdrop of heat waves, droughts and flooding that have wreaked havoc in many parts of the world. The disasters show the devastating impacts of climate change are all around us.
As mandated by the Paris Agreement in 2015, COP28 will deliver the first-ever Global Stocktake (GST), i.e. a comprehensive evaluation of the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) progress against climate goals. A Climate Group is now working with the UN's High-Level Expert Group (HLEG) and the COP28 presidency to find the best ways of holding governments and other actors accountable for their climate promises.
After all, pledges are one thing while actions are quite another. The GST has been evaluating whether countries have been making tangible progress on their Paris Agreement commitments eight years on, and their conclusion is widely expected to be “No”.
Central issues that will be debated during the upcoming COP28 will most likely include energy security. The matter has taken center stage since last year, partly due to the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the ongoing war in Gaza, Palestine.
The wars have resulted in an intensification of fossil fuel production in the short term as countries attempt to meet their energy needs. Consequently, this brings about failure in pursuing emission reduction targets, and green economies. As such, COP27 had apparently fallen short of reaching a consensus on phasing out fossil fuels.
Another issue that will come up at COP28 is food insecurity. The food system is one of the main drivers of climate change, contributing a third of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and consuming 30 percent of the world’s total energy demand. Extreme weather events, conflicts and COVID-19 have exacerbated the existing issues.
