All about the COP26

The COP 26 has just ended. This year the famous climate conference took place in Glasgow, in Scotland. Hence, the United Kingdom holds the presidency of it, in partnership with Italy. It involved over 30,000 people, representing nearly 200 different countries.

What is the COP26?

“The world’s best last chance to get runaway climate change under control”.

That is how the COP26 describe itself. Basically, this COP (Conference Of the Parties), is a conference where all the states of the United Nation and above discuss climate. They also try to agree and find solutions altogether to fight against global warming. This year, the COP took place in Glasgow, UK. It started on October 31st and ended on November 12th. Moreover, the conference was presided by Alok Sharma, the Minister of State at the Cabinet Office (for the UK government). In terms of ecology, UK is quite a good example. The country showed to the world that economy and ecology can go hand in hand.

“Our economy grew by 78% and our emissions decreased by 44% over this time, the fastest decline in the G7”, said the report.

What is the goal of the COP26?

There are four goals to be achieved with this COP 26. The first one, is to “secure global net-zero by mid-century and keep 1.5 degrees within reach”, which means that countries need to reduce their emissions by 2030.

To do so, “countries will need to accelerate the phaseout of coal, encourage investment in renewables, curtail deforestation and speed up the switch to electric vehicles”, said the COP26 explanation document.

Then, the second aim is to protect and restore the ecosystem.

This task will require the states to “build defences, put warning systems in place and make infrastructure and agriculture more resilient to avoid loss of homes, livelihoods, and lives”, also said the report.

The third target is raising money, since, without money, effective changes can’t be done. And finally, the last important thing is the collaboration between the countries. Because if they don’t work together, no progress could be done.

Why is COP26 so important?

“Securing a brighter future for our children and future generations requires countries to take urgent action at home and abroad to turn the tide on climate change. It is with ambition, courage, and collaboration as we approach the crucial COP26 summit in the UK that we can seize this moment together, so we can recover cleaner, rebuild greener and restore our planet”, said Boris Johnson, the UK Prime Minister.

Furthermore, it is more than necessary to stop global warming. If we don’t, there would be severe damage to human and nature. For example, natural disasters will increase in frequency and intensity, as we have already seen in recent years. But it also causes humanitarian disasters, as more and more climate refugees appear as the ice melts.