The UK confirmed Friday (14) that the COP26 climate summit will be held in person in November in the Scottish city of Glasgow, despite the Covid-19 pandemic.
The meeting will discuss how to avoid an uncontrolled rise in global temperatures.
Proposals to combat global warming appeared in Rio in 1992
The event was tentatively scheduled for November 2020 and postponed due to the pandemic. The leaders of 196 countries, representatives of companies, NGOs and experts should be brought together.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government hopes the meeting will be fruitful. The UK has pledged to achieve carbon neutrality in 2050, which will include a shift in the UK economy. The government plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2035 by 78% compared to 1990 levels.
In this way, London hopes to encourage other countries to announce ambitious targets, a diplomatic task that will not be easy for British COP26 President Alok Sharma.
“I’ve always defended the need to have the COP face-to-face. We are planning to hold a face-to-face summit,” he announced Friday during a six-month speech at the event, scheduled for November 1-12, Sharma said.
He said the UK was ensuring that delegates’ security was of the utmost importance – the country’s health situation had improved a lot, however Many countries still fear that their representatives will not be able to attend the discussions in person, prompting some to request a virtual meeting.
Sharma said the organizers pledged to take steps to make the meeting “safe,” including tests and vaccinations.
Last week, the United Kingdom organized its first direct meeting in two years of foreign ministers from the Group of Seven, a group of the seven largest economies on the planet.
The G7 heads of state and government, including US President Joe Biden, are also planning to meet in person in the English Cornwall region from June 11 to 13.
Sharma noted that the Glasgow summit is the “last hope” for curbing the global average temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to the pre-industrial era, a barrier that scientists believe climate change will be out of control.
According to the United Nations, greenhouse gas emissions must be cut by roughly 8% every year to stay within the global 1.5 ° C increase required by the Paris Agreement. This equates to saving the same amount that was saved during the pandemic every year through 2030.
Environmental protection organizations praised the British commitment.
“Alok Sharma is absolutely correct in her desire to maintain the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 ° C,” said Kate Blagojevich, climate director at the NGO Greenpeace.
“This goal should be in the minds of all world leaders and form the basis for all the decisions they make,” he added, but for it to become a reality, all countries must now intensify their work, starting with the United Kingdom. “.
Meanwhile, Johnson’s government, which despite big statements, has recently been attacked by some controversial decisions.
“The UK cannot claim to be a climate leader abroad while the government is at home Continues to maintain a new coal mine in Cumbria or the blockade of British onshore wind planningBlagojevich said.
Oxfam’s climate policy advisor, Tracy Carty, also denounced London’s support for oil and gas exploration in the North Sea.
Sharma also highlighted the need for more funding to help vulnerable countries.
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