COP27 – Here’s what you need to know

From loss and damage agreements, to 1.5°C temperature rise limits, The Compliance People consultant Valentin Avram gives a roundup of the outcomes of the COP27 Climate Summit.

FIRSTLY, WHAT IS COP27?

COP27 is the annual United Nations (UN) climate conference that took place between 6th November 2022 and 20th November 2022 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. COP27 attendees included governments and negotiators from across the world, who discussed solutions to keeping temperature rises below dangerous levels.

WHAT ARE THE OUTCOMES?

Limit to temperature rises

One of the key outcomes of the COP26 conference, which took place in Glasgow in 2021, was the Glasgow Climate Pact which aimed to accelerate the action on climate change by limiting the rise of global temperatures to 1.5°C.

The COP26 commitment to limit global warming to 1.5°C was reaffirmed, though no new actions were agreed upon. A proposal to peak global greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 failed to go through.

Energy

A provision was made in the final text of COP27 to boost “low-emissions energy”. This could mean nuclear reactors or wind and solar farms. It could also be interpreted as gas, which has lower emissions than coal.

However, no agreement was reached on the phasing-out of coal. The previous provision from COP26 to phase-out the use of coal was maintained, but no new actions were included.

Technology

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the UN Environment Program (UNEP) launched a five-year joint work programme for 2023 to 2027. The aim of this joint programme is to enable countries to achieve the goals of the UNFCCC, and those of the Paris Agreement. It also enables the implementation of national climate plans which can be achieved through the development and transfer of technology.

MAIN TAKEAWAY

The target to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels was reaffirmed, but it seems almost impossible to achieve due to the lack of progress on cutting emissions. Is the current instability caused by the war in Ukraine one of the reasons for these setbacks? In my opinion, it is fair to say so.