- UN research predicts the last eight years will set a record for warmth.
- More than 120 international leaders are expected to attend COP27 meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh.
- Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says COP27 must be the venue for immediate and reliable climate action.
The UN’s climate change summit has opened in Egypt with a warning that our planet is “sending a distress signal”.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was responding to a Sunday UN research that predicted the last eight years would set a record for warmth.
At the COP27 meeting, which will take place in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, more than 120 international leaders are expected to attend.
Two weeks of international talks on climate action will begin with this.
Egyptian Foreign Minister and COP27 president Sameh Shoukry encouraged decision-makers not to let the food and energy crises brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine stand in the way of addressing climate change.
“It is inherent on us all in Sharm el-Sheikh to demonstrate our recognition of the magnitude of the challenges we face and our steadfast resolve to overcome it.”
It states that the last eight years are on track to be the warmest on record and that the increase in global temperatures since pre-industrial times has now reached 1.15C.
In addition to these major effects, the report forewarned of the acceleration of sea level rise, record glacier mass losses, and extreme heatwaves.
According to Mr. Guterres, COP27 must be the venue for immediate and reliable climate action in light of these results.
On Monday, the World Leaders’ Summit will officially kick off COP27. During this event, heads of state and government will make five-minute speeches detailing their objectives for the conference.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is expected to urge world leaders to move “further and faster” in transitioning to renewable energy.
He will also tell leaders not to “backslide” on commitments made at last year’s COP26 summit in Glasgow.
On Monday and Tuesday, world leaders will address the summit; after they go, conference participants will begin negotiating.
Several commitments were reached during the Glasgow summit the previous year:
- to “phase down” the use of coal – one of the most polluting fossil fuels
- to stop deforestation by 2030
- to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030
- to submit new climate action plans to the UN
The developing world, which is leading the fight against climate change, is calling for the fulfilment of prior financial pledges.
However, they also want to talk about “loss and damage” financing, which is money that will help them deal with the costs that climate change has already caused rather than merely preparing for its effects in the future. The topic is now officially on the COP27 agenda after protracted talks.
Over the course of the two weeks, there will be hundreds of events in addition to all the formal negotiations, including exhibitions, workshops, and cultural performances by youth, business organizations, indigenous societies, academic institutions, artists, and fashion communities from around the world.
Protests, which are typically a lively aspect of COP conferences, are probably going to be muted.
Since taking office in 2014, Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi has implemented a severe crackdown on dissent. According to rights organizations, there may have been 60,000 political prisoners in the nation, many of whom were held without trial.
According to Mr. Shoukry, area in Sharm el-Sheikh would be set aside for protests. Activists in Egypt, however, informed the media that several regional organizations had been unable to register for the conference.
