The climate emergency declared by the European Parliament could not have been more timely. It took place a few days before the start of the 2019 Climate Summit. A few months ago, in addition, a scientific report was published by the UN intergovernmental panel of experts on climate change (IPCC) that warned of the need not to exceed the threshold of 1 , 5 degrees. Strikes for the climate have been protagonists around the world: concern for the climate is more latent than ever. Society needs to be ambitious.
This breeding ground is the responsibility with which Madrid hosts COP25 in 2019 , which brings together dozens of scientists, businessmen, institutional representatives (including heads of state and ministers), non-governmental organizations and governments from around the world.
What does COP mean?
The acronym COP (Conference of the Parties) refers to the Conference of the Parties, that is, a convention of the countries that have signed up to the United Nations Framework Convention against Climate Change (UNFCCC). This convention has been held uninterruptedly for 24 years. The first took place in Berlin in 1995.
The importance of this convention is vital for our planet and human societies: the warnings of scientists are useless, if there are no policies that can carry out the measures to remedy the situations that threaten our lands, our ocean and all The humanity. And all of this is in grave danger if we do not drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
In addition, COP25 is especially vital, given that it is the last before the arrival of the so-called Horizon 2020 , that is, the effective activation of the Paris Agreement of COP21 of 2015, or the commitment not to exceed the threshold of 1, 5 degrees , which should be active by January of the new year that is about to begin.
But what is going to be talked about at COP25? What are the priorities of the convention, on the threshold of 2020? The World Resources Institute (WRI) has produced a summary of the priorities of this summit:
1. Be more ambitious with the goals of the Paris Agreement
As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, society is becoming increasingly aware of the climate emergency, and this leads, as a consequence, to the need to be more ambitious. For this reason, for this summit 68 countries will present national climate commitments (known as NDCs) updated for 2020. It remains to be seen, first, that they will fulfill their promise, and that the rest of the countries will follow their example.
As detailed by the WRI, at COP25 it is expected to unify positions in energy, finance and environment policies to direct action towards a low-carbon economy. In addition, at COP25, countries will be told when the next round of commitments will be, and when the UNFCCC will produce a report on measures that can help assess progress towards the goals of the Paris Agreement.
2. Establish rules for the carbon market
The use of international carbon markets was one of the pending issues at COP24 held in Poland. It was established in the Kyoto Protocol and consists, in essence, is that each country has a maximum rate of emission of polluting gases. Some countries do not reach the minimum (they have excess emissions) and, so to speak, buy them from countries that exceed it. The problem is that this practice can paint a false picture of general carbon cuts, because both the buyer and the seller of carbon credits would claim the same emission reductions in their national registries.
Without proper oversight and strong rules, this could severely undermine climate action . Emission reductions prior to the 2020 target, which were included under the Kyoto Protocol, could be counted towards countries’ climate commitments after 2020, delaying and weakening emissions reduction efforts.
3. Agree on a common time frame
More undone COP24 duties: set the length of the implementation period for countries’ NDCs (climate commitments).
The initial NDCs presented in 2015 (COP21 of the Paris Agreement) covered different time frames, some from 2020 to 2025 and others from 2020 to 2030.
During the last summit, countries agreed to have a common time frame for future rounds of climate commitments (for an implementation period starting in 2031), but could not agree on what the exact length of this implementation period would be.
In Madrid, the goal is to agree on a common time frame that requires all countries to implement their new NDCs over an implementation period from 2031 to 2035 , which aligns with the five-year ambition set out in the Paris Agreement. If any country needs a longer time frame, it will also need to be indicated and justified during this summit.
4. Loss and Damage Review Agreement
Another issue that negotiators will address in Madrid is the review of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage (WIM), established in 2013 to address loss and damage associated with the impacts of climate change , from the loss of cultural heritage and land. , to the livelihoods and human lives themselves.
At this summit, they will review the effectiveness of WIM and its long term for WIM: how it can be improved and even the possible establishment of a working group on financing of loss and damage.
5. Financial capacity to face these challenges
As detailed by The World Resources Institute, so far 28 countries have confirmed nine thousand seven hundred million dollars in pledges for the replenishment of the Green Climate Fund ; 12 of those countries have at least doubled their contributions compared to 2014. This is a positive step, but many more countries should contribute, including oil-producing countries. So developed countries that have not yet doubled their contributions will have to do so as well.
Of course, developing countries, particularly those most vulnerable to climate change, cannot intensify climate action without financial support from developed ones. This year, in addition, countries will have to decide whether and how the Paris Committee and other bodies of the UNFCCC will continue to help countries close the gap between potential and reality .
On the other hand, a very interesting point of view to address is how countries’ climate actions could affect equality in their societies, thus taking into account just transitions, health impacts, and gender approaches.
COP25 is an especially key and sensitive summit in which all countries put enormous responsibility at stake. These next two weeks, from December 2 to 13, the whole world will look to Madrid, expectantly.
