Read below general information about:

International Agreements on the Environment & the state of our Climate

INTRODUCTION

Climate Change refers to changes in weather patterns on Earth over an extended period of time, such as the rise in temperatures seen in recent years. Today’s growing body of evidence on climate change supports the principle that the earth’s climate is rapidly changing in response to continued inputs of CO2 (carbon dioxide) and other greenhouse gases ― such as methane, nitrous oxide, ozone ― to the atmosphere resulting from human activities. Of these greenhouse gases, CO2 has had the largest effect on global climate as a result of enormous increases from the pre-industrial era to today. Although changes in climate are natural, human activities such as fossil fuel combustion, land use, deforestation, and current agricultural practices magnify these changes.

Today, scientists track the Earth’s temperature increase from the baseline at the start of the Industrial Revolution in the mid 19th century, when humans ramped up the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil. The past two decades have included 18 of the 20 warmest years since this record-keeping began around 1850, with the warming trend having rapidly increased since the 1970s. Scientists believe that surface temperatures of Earth have probably reached their warmest ever since the last inter-glacial period 125,000 years ago.

Climate change is undeniably one of the greatest challenges of our times and today we face an increasing number of droughts, heat waves, extreme weather events, melting glaciers, rising sea levels and the threat of ongoing biodiversity loss that puts at risk the natural development of our planet’s ecosystems. Climate research has indicated that each increment of warming in the future, will bring cascading consequences that would threaten every aspect and necessity on Earth including biodiversity, freshwater, and food supplies while also increasing the frequency and magnitude of extreme weather events.

This past decade has been an extreme warning alert that our planet is consistently recording hotter and hotter temperatures, and this requires serious action on the part of all nations if we wish to have a sustainable future on this planet. By continuing on the path that we are on right now, we will soon surpass the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement’s goal to limit temperature rise to 1.5-2°C above pre-industrial levels, after which the predicted effects on the planet and people’s lives will most likely be irreversible as the tipping point for preventing other processes which can drive further warming will have been surpassed.

The ten-year period 2010-2019 was the hottest decade on record, hence already 73% of the way to the 1.5°C threshold scientists warn the planet must stay under to avoid the worst impacts.

And yet, in 2021 greenhouse gas concentrations continued to surge despite the global pandemic, and more specifically, emissions from methane, the greenhouse gas which is roughly 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide in the short-term, continued to rise substantially. Continuing on the path to the predicted tipping point, even if the world stops emitting greenhouse gases, will push the Earth into “Hothouse Earth” conditions that could bring a cascade of more extreme events of melting ice, warming seas, shifting currents and dying forests that would be far less supportive of human life. In order to avoid a ‘hothouse’ state, many other efforts will be required alongside the transition away ffrom the burning of fossil fuels, including improved forest, agricultural and soil management; biodiversity conservation and technologies that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it underground.

The UN Climate Conferences that take place every year are critical as they measure our both our ability, our willingness and commitment to lay a path to keep climate change to survivable levels and to restore nature to the equilibrium required for the planet’s survival.

However, following the UN climate conference in Glasgow in November of 2021, Climate Action Tracker - the world’s most respected climate analysis coalition - warned the world is still on track for 2.4°C of warming, despite the new and updated carbon-cutting pledges made at COP26 in Glasgow.

Scientists have concluded that greenhouse gas emissions must fall by about 45% this decade for global temperatures to stay within 1.5°C of pre-industrial levels.

Climate Action Diplomacy

In the constantly shifting political and economic realities of the current moment, the increasing impacts of extreme events on daily life across the planet, and other risks to the security of human life, Climate Action is crucial to global efforts to address the multiplying challenges of the climate crisis.

In the 21st century, and in our increasingly interconnected and inter-reliant world, diplomacy has become more proactive, multi-directional, and innovative in order to reach and include the voices of every level of stakeholders and society. Climate Action Diplomacy in particular, demands creative and practical partnerships that are working collectively on common issues and problems. It also requires for the open sharing of data and the exchange of research so that each region of the world can build an integrated approach to the climate crisis, and develop systems in which scientific knowledge and observational networks are coordinated into producing actionable results and sound policies. Climate Action ranges from maximizing the effect of mitigation and adaptation strategies and initiatives; stepping up the deployment of renewable energy and furthering commitments to reducing emissions; leveraging new technologies and focusing smart investment to ensure sustainable development and future resilience.

We see across the planet that nations are ushering in a new age of Climate Diplomacy in their foreign agendas in order to facilitate the achievement of objectives through bilateral and wider regional relationships with governments, the business sector and the broader society. This greater focus indicates that Climate Action has become one of the highest priorities for all nations for dealing with the ongoing daily challenges of maintaining and protecting water, energy and food — ensuring human security — for all peoples.

The key International Agreements on the Environment:

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
and
The United Nations Global Sustainable Goals 2015-30 (SDGs)

COP, or the “Conference of the Parties” refers to the governing body of an international convention, which meets periodically to assess progress. The three main United Nations international Conventions on the environment with a COP are:

—United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is an international environmental treaty to: stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent interference with the planet’s climate system, and its COP is its the supreme decision-making body. COP24 took place in Poland in December of 2018. COP25 took place in December 2019 in Madrid, Spain. COP26 took place in Glasgow in November 2021.
—United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), was set up to: combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought through national action programs that incorporate long-term strategies supported by international cooperation and partnership arrangements. The most recent meeting, COP13 took place in Ordos City, China, 6-16 September 2017. UNCCD COP14 took place in 2-13 September 2019 in New Delhi, India. UNCCD COP15 will take place in Côte d’Ivoire in May of 2022.
—Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has three main goals including: the conservation of biological diversity (or biodiversity); the sustainable use of its components; and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources). The CBD also includes the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing. COP14 CBD took place in Sharm El-Sheik, Egypt in November 2018. The CBD COP15 is rescheduled to take place in 2022 in Kunming, China.

The three challenges of climate change, land degradation and biodiversity loss are equally essential to protecting the health of our natural environment, all of its species, and nature’s ability to provide food and fresh water to the growing human population.

More important information:

Background information on the COP for the UNFCCC:

• The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) opened for signature in 1992 during the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, and later entered into force in 1994. Through this instrument, the United Nations has equipped itself with an action framework to fight global warming.

• After its entry into force in 1994, the UNFCCC Secretariat was established in Geneva. It was then relocated to Bonn in 1995 following the “First Conference of the Parties” (COP1) in Berlin. Today, this UN Convention has near-universal membership. The countries that ratified the Convention are called the Parties to the Convention.

• The COP was created and put in place in order to structure the efforts of the Parties to the Convention as they address climate change. The COP meets annually to review and assess the implementation of the UNFCCC and any other legal instruments the body adopts with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and fighting climate change. These annual UN climate change conferences are commonly referred to as COP.

• Since 1995 there have been twenty-six COPs. The ground-breaking agreement on Climate Change of the Paris COP21 has been ratified by 192 states (including the EU) as Parties to the Convention out of 197 countries.

The Paris UN Climate Change Conference COP21

The Paris UN Climate Change Conference COP21 of 30 November - 11 December 2015 was hailed as an agreement that would set the standards of future global political cooperation, agreement and action on impactful climate solutions. It was also regarded as the most important international decision and focused political document on global climate governance in more than 20 years with the aim of preventing major and irreversible damage to our planet’s human and natural systems.

On the final day of this Paris Summit, world leaders from around the world signed a global climate Agreement, a legally-binding treaty for all signatories. President of the Cop21, Laurent Fabius called the agreement “a turning point..and a universal action of peace by 196 countries” in the global process to save the planet. The Agreement it was noted at the time, must also be ratified nationally, and will not become binding to its member states until 55 parties who produce over 55% of the world's greenhouse gas have sanctioned it.

The essential aim of the Paris Agreement is to: “strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Additionally, the agreement aims to strengthen the ability of countries to deal with the impacts of climate change.” In other words, world leaders agreed to try and limit Earth's rapid temperature rise to below 2°C Celsius above pre-industrial levels, with a preferred goal of 1.5°C.

Although the Paris Accord was seen by many as insufficient to halt global warming, falling far too short of what was hoped for, including a lack of mechanism to ensure that countries enforce the measures, it has been established that it is a good start when compared to the past attempts. With this action, governments, businesses, experts, advocates, civil society and citizens worldwide did finally officially recognize the universal nature of climate change, marking a pivotal moment in modern environmental history, and a significant shift in global perception on climate progress.

Climate update 2015-21:

Scientists expect that weather and climate-related disasters to carry into 2022, and for global average temperatures to be warmer than 2021.
Now must be the time for real global action to reverse man-made climate change.

See below for updates on the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Climate Change and its relation to the topic of water:

Climate change is a multidimensional issue. At the center of the climate change discussion is water.

The dramatic increase in the Earth’s temperature in recent years due to global warming has shifted and disrupted the planet’s natural hydrological cycle and put our ecosystems under increasing stress. The consequences of these changes are affecting life across the globe; on the most basic level, in the form of extreme weather patterns and their effects - colder winters, more intense floods and dramatic hurricanes, superstorms; severe drought, wildfires and longer and drier summers, melting glaciers and rising sea levels worldwide. These changes will continue to affect our lives if the global community does not have an integrated and unified response.

In addition to this, water experts agree that even if our dependence on fossil fuels is reduced and greenhouse gas emissions are reversed, if we prolong our continued abuse of our planet’s fresh water and its water systems, we will not be able to stop climate change.

Thus, in order to tackle the greatest challenge of our age, climate change, we must also appreciate the need to address the world’s multiple water crises from every angle - not only from the environmental - and consider the larger perspective of corporate, economic, political pressures that are still driving our water governance.

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Agreement adopted by world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly on 25 - 27 September 2015 just prior to the Paris Agreement was a powerfully significant and collective action - on poverty, injustice, gender equality, health, global development and environmental sustainability. Each goal agreed upon at the Sustainable Development Summit has specific targets to be achieved over the next 15 years.

“The global goals provide a unique opportunity to end poverty, reduce inequality, build peaceful societies and fix climate change. All nations and all citizens have a role to play to achieve these global goals. We hope that the message of the goals will reach everyone on the planet..” ― U.N. Sec. General Ban Ki-Moon, referring to this universal sustainable development campaign.

Within this vision of ensuring a healthy planet for future generations were pledges that had to do more specifically with water-related issues:

• CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION (Goal #6): “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all”

• DECISIVE CLIMATE ACTION (Goal #13): “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”

• LIFE BELOW WATER (Goal #14): “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”

“WATER DAY” at the COP21: During the Paris Summit, the World Water Council and over a dozen members of the international water community came together in a collective effort represented by the #ClimateIsWater initiative, with the shared objective of elevating the recognition for water and climate at the political level, and in the climate change discussions from one COP to the next. The need to place water issues at the heart of climate discussions was stressed, as the reality is that water does not adequately or explicitly appear in the official agenda - although all impacts of climate change are manifested through water.  In 2016 the World Water Council plans to build on the momentum of the #ClimateisWater campaign, including at the COP22 scheduled to take place in Marrakesh in November 2016.

“It is through water that we can measure both the severity and the acceleration of global warming; however, we can also see that, through water, solutions can be found.” ― Ségolène Royal, France’s energy and environment minister at the COP21 ‘Climate is Water’ event. 

Nonetheless, water-related issues did appear in the Paris agreement through the following elements:

• In reference to the post-2015 Sustainable Development Framework, in which water is a specific objective in Global Goal #6.
• In reference to human rights in the preamble; that the right to water and sanitation was recognized as a fundamental right in 2010.
• Through the importance given to adaptation and its financing, in which water is a central issue.
• Through the emphasis on the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, in which water is the first priority for adaptation.

U.N. Resolution on Human Rights to Water and Sanitation: On 17 December 2015, the United Nations General Assembly passed and adopted a Resolution on the Human Rights to Water and Sanitation, recalling the 28 July 2010 resolution, which recognized the right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation as a human right that is essential for the full enjoyment of life and all human rights. With this renewed measure, the U.N. recognizes the distinction between the human right to water and that of sanitation; the two issues remain related and both are derived from the right to an adequate standard of living. The text was adopted by consensus, so all UN Member State have now agreed the following:

• That everyone is entitled “to have access to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use”.
• That everyone is entitled “to have physical and affordable access to sanitation, in all spheres of life, that is safe, hygienic, secure, and socially and culturally acceptable and that provides privacy and ensures dignity”.

A Paris Agreement citizens’ initiative on climate change:

These United Nations SDGs and COP Agreements will together potentially shape global efforts to address some of the world’s most pressing future challenges, reconcile the economic and environmental goals of the global community, and inspire future decisive and meaningful action for people and the planet - to safeguard the integrity of our vital ecosystems for a liveable climate, for clean air, and for pure water.

See below for COP UNFCCC updates

Updates on the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change

2015 Paris | Climate Change Summit | COP21
2016 Marrakesh | Climate Change Conference | COP22
2017 Bonn | Climate Change Conference | COP23
2018 Katowice | Climate Change Conference | COP24
2019 Madrid | Climate Change Conference | COP25
2021 Glasgow | Climate Change Conference | COP26
2022 Sharm El-Sheikh | Climate Change Conference | COP27
2023 Dubai | Climate Change Conference | COP28
2024 Baku | Climate Change Conference | COP29
2025 Belém | Climate Change Conference | COP30

Update 22 April 2016:
The first step of the Paris Agreement had been its backing by 196 countries on Dec. 12, 2015.
The second step was a signing ceremony at the UN headquarters that took place on 22 April, 2016 International Earth Day, where more than 155 countries committed to sign the Paris Agreement; the period for signatures remains open for one year, so that all parties can sign, in order to validate the Paris Agreement. In the third and final step, each nation must unilaterally ratify the agreement, which in many cases, will involve passage by national legislatures.

Update August 2016:
Since the Paris agreement opened for signatures in April, only 24 of the 197 nations have ratified it (accounting for 1.08% of global emissions).
When the 71st U.N. General Assembly that opens on Sept. 21, there will be a special meeting to encourage the signatory nations to complete the domestic legislation necessary to formally ratify the agreement. If the required 55 countries (which account for 55% of global emissions) approve the deal by 7th Oct., it will go into effect before the next global meeting in Marrakech, for the COP22. This 22nd session of the Conference of the Parties, and the 12th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 12) will be held in Bab Ighli, Marrakech, Morocco from 7-18th November 2016.

Update 3 September 2016:
At the G20 Leaders Summit in G20 in Hangzhou, China, the world’s two largest greenhouse gas emitters, China and the United States officially ratified the climate agreement reached last April. With this gesture, the two countries move the Paris Agreement a major step toward taking effect this year. These actions now bring the number of countries that have ratified the agreement to 26. With the addition of the U.S. and China, this accounts now for nearly 40% of global emissions - about three-fourths of the required total, bringing momentum for the UN General Assembly planned for 21st September.

Update 5 October 2016:
At the European Parliament session on the Paris agreement - also attended by U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon - the European Union’s ratification bumped up national participation to the necessary threshold needed to put the climate deal into effect. By the next day, a total 73 countries including Canada, India and Nepal had ratified the agreement -  countries that account for nearly 57% of the world's carbon emissions. The climate deal will enter into force in the following 30 days - 4 November 2016 - less than a year after it was first reached, making now an official agreement, and a major improvement over its predecessor, the Kyoto Protocol.

Update 18 November 2016:
During the Marrakesh conference, 11 more governments ratified the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement – Australia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Finland, Gambia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan and the UK; the total needed for the agreement to become law was 55 nations representing 55% of global emissions. By the conclusion on COP22 which was attended by over 200 negotiators, 111 nations had joined the Agreement. Although the Paris Agreement was a complete document that proposed the goals and framework for international climate action, it was decided that two sessions of 2017, that will be held in Bonn, will to serve to refine and define the Agreement and create a blueprint or ‘rulebook’, until the next major meeting of talks in 2018.

Update 1 June 2017:
This landmark Paris climate deal to cut global carbon emissions lost one of the world’s biggest polluters, the U.S., after its President Donald Trump decided that the country will no longer participate in the agreement. While the decision means the United States will cease actions to meet its commitments under the agreement, fully withdrawing from the accord will actually take close to four years.

Update 18 May 2017:
Fijian Prime Minister and incoming President of COP23, Frank Bainimarama addressed delegates in Bonn and presented Fiji’s vision is for the upcoming COP and anticipated advances to the Paris Agreement, such as accelerating climate action for all vulnerable societies. Offering the perspective of a Pacific Islander, he addressed the vulnerability of Small Island Developing States, and other low lying nations and states or threatened cities in the developed world like Miami, New York, Venice or Rotterdam. For all global citizens, whether it is the rising seas, extreme weather events or changes to agriculture, threats to our way of life, no one will escape the impact of climate change.

Update 17 November 2017:
As was the case at the Marrakesh COP22, the negotiations of the Bonn COP23 of 6-27 November, centered around attempts to make significant progress on developing technical rules and processes needed to fulfill the 2015 Paris Agreement’s ambition, with countries negotiating the finer details of how the agreement will work from 2020 onwards. Other key highlights in Bonn included the announced withdrawal of the USA under the presidency of Donald Trump, and Syria's commitment that it would sign the Paris Agreement, leaving the USA as the only country in the world that does not intend to honor the landmark deal. Also, 19 countries committed to the phasing out of coal use. The primary outcome of this UN session was to set a deadline for the drafting of implementation guidelines for next year’s COP24 in Katowice, Poland, set to be held in Dec 2018.

Update 17 December 2018:
Following two weeks of difficult talks and political divisions at the COP24 conference held in Polish city of Katowice, the nearly 200 nations finally agreed on rules for implementing a landmark global climate deal and a more detailed framework of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The 156-page rulebook - which is broken down into themes such as how countries will report and monitor their national pledges to curb greenhouse gas emissions and update their emissions plans is being criticized for not being ambitious enough to prevent the dangerous effects of global warming. Moreover, the meeting was undermined by such things as Saudi Arabia, the Unites States, Russia and Kuwait refused to use the word “welcome” in association with the findings of the October U.N.-commissioned IPCC Report that warned that keeping the Earth’s temperature rise to 1.5C would need “unprecedented changes” in every aspect of society. The COP24 was also affected by controversies such as a pro-fossil fuel side event put on by the United States (and backed by Australia) that was met with hecklers and protestors. Despite all of the contentious issues some groundwork was laid for the COP25 to be held in the Chilean capital of Santiago.

Update 17 June 2019:
Another “intersessional” meeting was held 17 - 27 June, 2019 in Bonn, such as which takes place every year in the German city between the annual conferences of the parties (COPs). At this meeting, the fight over the Intergovernmental Panel’s Report on Climate Change (IPCC) that certain countries had refused to acknowledge in the COP24 conference. The battle was over a text that would include reference to the scientist’s conclusion that carbon emissions would have to be reduced by 45% by 2030. Saudi Arabia was the country at the fore in trying to pretend this key scientific report did not exist. This act was seen by the chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (group of around 40 small island states), as inflammatory. The Saudis position has had support from a small group of countries including the USA, Australia and Iran.

Update 23 September 2019:
The Climate Action Summit of 2019, was held at the UN Headquarters in NY, convened around the the theme, “Climate Action Summit 2019: A Race We Can Win. A Race We Must Win” and also included a Climate Youth Summit. With the aim of increasing pressure on political and economic actors to achieve the aims of the summit, a global climate strike was held around the world on 20 September, with over four million participants. Host U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres requested a different participation from the delegates, and countries were asked to present concrete and realistic plans and not just make speeches. The results of the agreement were considered significant, although major carbon economies, such as India did not pledge to reduce its use of coal, and the U.S. did not even speak. A distinctive element of the meeting was the presence of young climate activist Greta Thunberg, whose impassioned and emotional statement to the General Assembly was widely covered by the media, bringing more attention to the climate emergency.

Update December 2019:
Although the Paris Accord of 2015 had established the common goal of avoiding a temperature increase of more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7F) by the end of the century, the climate talks held at the COP25 in Madrid were generally viewed as not very successful, with major global polluters resisting calls to amplify efforts to keep global warming at bay and negotiators postponing the regulation of global carbon markets until the next year, falling far short of the pledge to cut planet-heating greenhouse gases, which developing countries and environmentalists had lobbied the delegates to achieve. In the end, 200 nations simply endorsed a declaration to help poor countries suffering the effects of climate change, however without allocating any new funds to be able to achieve this. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres declared his disappointment with the meeting’s outcome.

Update 2020:
The COP26 UN Climate Change conference set to take place in Glasgow in November 2020 is postponed due to COVID-19. Dates for a rescheduled conference in 2021, hosted in Glasgow by the UK in partnership with Italy, would be set out in due course.

Update November 2021:

COP26 Conference took place in Glasgow, Scotland from 31 Oct to 13 Nov. 2021 under the Chairmanship of UK Cabinet Minister Alok Sharma. It was attended by 110 heads of state; notable prime ministers or heads of state non-attendees were China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Iran, Mexico, Brazil, Turkey, Malaysia. On 13 November 2021, the participating 197 countries agreed a new deal, known as the Glasgow Climate Pact, which was hailed with mixed feelings. The progress made included an unprecedented mention of fossil fuels and their role in exacerbating the climate crisis; past agreements had never mentioned coal, oil or gas. The Pact also explicitly cited coal as the single biggest contributor, however, last-minute objections from multiple countries, India most vocally, demanding a watering down of the language used undermined this improvement i.e. the phrasing being the intention to “phase down” use of unabated coal power, rather than to “phase it out”. Prior to Glasgow, the U.N. had set three criteria for success, including pledges to cut CO2 emissions in half by 2030, $100 billion in financial aid from rich nations to poor, and ensuring that half of that money went to helping the developing world adapt to the worst effects of climate change; none of which were achieved. However, a series of commitments were reached on a variety of topics, such as deforestation, liability, health care, climate finance, and net zero deadlines. Glasgow’s success was summarized by Conference President Sharma as some “progress on coal, cars, cash and trees”, however COP26 did not get close to agreement on how to cut carbon dioxide emissions enough to reach the overarching goal of limiting Earth’s warming by the end of the century to 1.5°C degrees.

Update 2022:

COP27 took place at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh from 6-18 November. There, one of the most significant changes made in Glasgow was an article that requests countries to come to the next conference with updated plans to slash emissions will be seen. Under the Paris Agreement framework (the Ratchet mechanism), countries would only have been obliged to do that by 2025. In other words, this should accelerate action by three years. The idea behind this mechanism of enhancing nationally determined contributions every five years is to accelerated the speed towards achieving net zero - a state where the amount of greenhouse gases emitted is not greater than the amount removed from the atmosphere.

Update 2023:

COP 28 took place from 30 November to 13 December in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates was the biggest of its kind with close to 85,000 participants, and marked the conclusion of the first ‘global stocktake’ of the world’s efforts to address climate change since Paris 2015. This stocktake assessed how each country was progressing on climate action, identified areas for improvement, and called for more ambitious goals, such as to triple renewable energy, double energy efficiency, and transition away from fossil fuels - to “keep 1.5˚C alive” and accelerate action across all areas by 2030. Another significant result was a Loss and Damage fund, an agreement to operationalize a fund to provide financial support to countries experiencing serious climate change impacts.

Update 2024:

COP29 will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan from 11 to 22 November, 2024.