Everything You Need to Know About COP26

3 minute read

• COP26 conference brought world leaders together in Glasgow to discuss global climate action to limit global warming to 1.5℃

• Pledges and agreements were reached in many sectors including energy, deforestation, methane emissions, and investments

• Protestors criticize “slow-moving action” of global leaders and call for more aggressive emissions reduction actions

COP26 is an annual conference held by the UN to discuss climate change. COP stands for Conference of Parties and is attended by countries that have signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The conference was held in Glasgow, Scotland from November 1 to November 12, 2021. 

Leaders hoped to take actions that will limit global warming to 2℃, but would prefer to reach the 1.5℃ increase goal established in the Paris Agreement in 2015. But many activists and experts doubt the 1.5℃ goal will be reached. We have summarized the major pledges and agreements of COP26 so you can understand the future of global climate action. 

Unexpected Agreement Between the US and China

The top two emitters of carbon dioxide in the world -- the US and China -- have unveiled a surprise agreement that promises to cut methane emissions, phase out coal consumption, and protect forests. The US has set a goal to reach 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035. China will work on reducing their coal consumption from 2026-2030. 

Energy

Forty countries have signed a pledge to stop the unabated use of coal. However, many major coal-reliant countries like China, Australia, India, and the US have not signed on.

India pledged to produce half of its electricity using renewable energy by 2030 and reach net zero carbon emissions by 2070. This pledge is good news because India has the second largest population in the world and the third largest emitter of carbon dioxide. 

The Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance aims to phase out oil and gas production. Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Greenland, Ireland, Sweden and Wales joined as full members, while Portugal, New Zealand and Italy joined as lower tier members. Unfortunately, the US, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Canada and China -- some of the world’s biggest drillers -- did not sign on. However, the state of California and the Canadian province Quebec became members. 

Methane

The Global Methane Pledge is a promise to limit methane emissions by 30% compared to 2020 levels. It has been signed by countries that make up ⅔ of the global economy, including the US and EU. Unfortunately, two major emitters, China and Russia, haven’t signed the pledge.

Forests

About 100 countries pledged to end deforestation by 2030. These countries include Canada, Brazil, Russia, China, Indonesia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the US and the UK, which make up about 85% of the world’s forests. This effort is backed by $20 billion in public and private funds. You can read the full list of countries here.

Oceans

Ecuador will expand the protected marine area around the Galapagos Islands by almost half.

Investment

More than 450 organizations -- including banks, fund managers, and insurance companies -- in 45 countries pledged to move $130 trillion of funds to recipients that commit to becoming net zero carbon emitters by 2050.

A group of high income countries pledged $12 billion in public finance for forest protection by between 2021 and 2025. 

Protests and Criticism

Groups of climate activists have gathered in Glasgow to urge leaders to take more ambitious action to fight climate change. Protestors include farmers, trade unionists, and Indigenous activists, to name a few. 

Greta Thunberg, a young climate activist who rose to fame in 2018 after starting a school strike for the climate, had some tough criticism of COP26. She called the event a failure and “global greenwashing.” Thunberg calls for much more aggressive actions than COPs have ever undertaken before. Many other young activists share this frustration that world leaders are moving too slowly. 

Conference Goes Into Overtime

Leaders are having difficulty coming to an agreement, so the conference will continue past its original end date of Friday, November 12, 2021. A draft agreement was released and it calls for nations to set more ambitious climate goals next year, but more vulnerable countries think the draft needs to provide more financial compensation. Scientists stated that the world must cut carbon dioxide emissions by 45% from 2010 levels by 2030, and get to net zero by 2050, to hit the 1.5℃ target. Countries’ emissions goals will be measured against this standard.

Conclusion

Time will tell how effective these agreements and pledges will be. We hope that world leaders will take even more ambitious actions in the future to curb the impacts of climate change. In the meantime, we can all do our small part to fight the climate crisis, including offsetting our travel and everyday emissions.