What Happened at COP 26
REUTERS CONNECT
On October 31, 2021 the United Kingdom hosted the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26). With a goal to accelerate climate action and finalize the Paris Rulebook, world leaders, climate experts, and activists attended the summit. Together, they focused on four main points: mitigation, adaptation, finance, and collaboration.
The first goal, mitigation, revolves around reaching a global target of net-zero. At the conference, over 153 countries placed emissions reduction targets for 2030 that align with the overarching goal of meeting a net-zero by 2050. According to scientists, the temperature must be prevented from rising above 1.5°C in order to prevent a “climate catastrophe.” Possible ways countries can reduce their emissions include, but are not limited to: investing in renewables, reducing deforestation, and accelerating the rate of transition to electric cars. Canada announced that by 2030, its goal is to reduce emissions by 40-45 per cent below the 2005 levels. To keep the country accountable a new legislation called the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act was created.
The second goal, adaptation, focuses on community adaptation to protect communities and natural hab- itats at risk of the increasing impacts of climate change. Countries are being encouraged to build infrastructure that will protect habitats to avoid the loss of homes and lives. As well, countries are encouraged to create an ‘Adaptation Communication’, which is a report on what efforts and measures are being put into adapting the country to the impacts of climate change. Moreover, the UK co-developed the Adaptation Action Coalition which Canada joined in 2021.
The third goal, finance, is centered around holding developed nations accountable for the Paris Agreement pledge where a joint 100 billion dollars will be mobilised towards climate action each year. This capital is im- portant in order to build the infrastruc- ture required for the world to move towards its targeted goals of net-zero by 2050 and to protect communities and natural habitats, especially those in underdeveloped nations.
The final goal, collaboration, is important to increase worldwide co- operation to deliver. To meet the goals agreed upon, all voices must be heard. Collaboration between governments, civil societies, and businesses will be crucial to tackle the climate crisis. At the conference, the delegates focused on finalizing the ‘Paris Rulebook’ which outlined a solution to move towards net-zero and resolve the issue of transparency and accountability when working towards these commitments. Canada has supported the efforts of climate action by joining the Adapta- tion Action Coalition in 2021, hosting the G7 Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change in 2018, and becoming the first Government to serve as a full member of the Ocean Risk and Resilience Ac- tion Alliance (ORRAA) in 2019 among various other contributions.
Despite the pledges and initiative countries are making, many activists remain doubtful that COP26’s goals will be fulfilled, primarily the goal focused on mobilising $100 billion. In 2019 the OECD estimated that $79.6 billion was financed, which was under the goal. Similarly, the finances have fallen short of the targeted amount each year since 2013. As well, many people have stated that the definition of what is considered climate finances is not defined enough, which makes it difficult to determine how much developed countries have mobilized.
As COP26 has come to an end and the delegates have returned home, being accountable for the pledges made will be key to the success of COP26. The leaders will meet next during COP27 which will take place in Egypt in 2022.