The UN COP27 climate change summit is underway in Egypt to deal with a whole array of problems pertaining to global warming.
What is COP27?
The COP27 acronym means the 27th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
When is COP27 Being Held?
The UN Climate Change Conference kicked off on November 6 and is due to close on November 18.
Where is COP27 Taking Place?
The climate summit is being held in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
Why is COP27 Important?
The importance of the Sharm el-Sheikh gathering can hardly be overstated, given the current situation around global warming’s impact on our planet.
Delegates attend the opening ceremony of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, more commonly known as COP27, at the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre, in Egypt's Red Sea resort of the same name
© AFP 2023 / STRINGER
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tweeted on Monday that in his address to world leaders at COP27, he specifically warned them that people from all across the globe are “on a highway to climate hell” with their foot “on the accelerator.”
“Our planet is fast approaching tipping points that will make climate chaos irreversible,” he argued, calling for “urgent” steps to tackle climate change.
In his address to COP27 attendees, Guterres singled out a string of important facts indicating the approach of the climate crisis:
atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide are at record levels because emissions continue:
the annual increase in methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, was the highest on record;
sea levels are now rising twice as fast as compared to 30 years ago, and the oceans are currently warmer than ever;
records related to melting glaciers in the Alps were broken earlier this year, when an average of four meters in height was lost;
scientists for the first time tracked rain rather than snow on top of the Greenland ice sheet at a height of 3,200 meters;
the area of Antarctic sea ice has plummeted to its lowest level on record, nearly one million km² below the long-term average;
precipitation in East Africa has been below average for four consecutive seasons, the longest in 40 years;
about 19 million people on Earth are now suffering from a food crisis.
In a message on the COP27 website, Cairo referred to Egypt assuming the incoming presidency of the UN climate summit, stressing that the country clearly recognizes “the gravity of the global climate challenge and appreciation of the value of multilateral, collective and concerted action as the only means to address this truly global threat.”
The 2022 UN climate summit comes amid rich countries’ push to avoid discussing the issue of establishing a so-called “loss and damage” fund regarding global warming. Developing nations say that rich countries should compensate them for their losses due to global warming, especially given the fact that well-off states are leading in terms of amount of carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere,
When Was the First UN Climate Change Conference?
The first UN climate summit was held in Berlin in 1995. The gathering opened on March 28 and wrapped up on April 7 of that year.
What Agreement Was Reached at the November 2015 Climate Change Conference in Paris?
The 2015 UN Climate Change Conference, which took place in the French capital between November 20 and December 12, saw participants clinch the so-called Paris Agreement.
The purpose of the agreement (under Article 2) is to “strengthen implementation” of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change by keeping global average temperature rises “well below” 2°C , and to “make efforts” to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C.
The parties to the agreement announced that the peak of CO2 emissions should be reached "as soon as possible."
24 January 2021, 09:43 GMT
Under the accord, the signatories determine their own contributions to the achievement of the declared common goal on an individual basis and review them every five years. The Paris Agreement mentions the insufficiency of currently proposed national contributions, even though no enforcement mechanism is envisaged, either in relation to the declaration of national goals, or in ensuring the obligatory achievement of them.
Where Was the Last Climate Change Conference Held?
Although the two-week COP26 wrapped up in Glasgow, Scotland on November 13, 2021, an additional day was needed so that participants can agree on the final document, known as the Glasgow Climate Pact.
Its key points include:
gradual reduction in the use of coal as the most environmentally unfriendly fossil fuel;
analysis of the global warming-related work being done on a more regular basis;
increasing financial assistance to poor and developing countries to combat climate change.
In a bizarre development during the 2021 UN climate summit, a video, which quickly went viral, showed US President Joe Biden sitting with his eyes closed at the Glasgow gathering while a speech by an attendee was being delivered. In the footage, an aide was then seen approaching POTUS, who opened his eyes and started listening to the speech and applauding after it ended.