COP26

My first morning in Greenland coincides with another important first day in the world: the start of COP26. For the next two weeks, the world's leaders gather in Glasgow, Scotland for the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference. Their goal: design a global front against climate change. The outcomes of this meeting will affect the entire world, least not Greenland.

This summit of world leaders is looking to design new agreements on how to handle what could be catastrophic climate change. But its only just starting. So I have no great insights into the outcomes of this event. What I can do is provide a bit of background on the conference and its connection to Greenland. The world will know more in thirteen days.

What is COP26?

• For nearly three decades, the United Nations (UN) has hosted a yearly climate change summit. This year is COP26 ("Conference Of the Parties, 26"). Almost every country on earth is a part of the UN Framework behind these meetings. This year's summit runs for 13 days, from October 31 to November 12 in Glasgow, Scotland.
  

Who is attending COP26?

• The United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCC) is the arm of the UN behind these meetings. The entity has 197 members (countries and other political bodies) who have agreed to support efforts that stabilize human-caused environmental changes. This year, it is anticipated that 100 world leaders will attend. Which ones have not been fully revealed as of right now. The list that is currently circulating the news is as follows (this may change in the coming days):
  
• Attending: Argentina, Australia, Canada, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, the European Union (representatives from 27 member states), France, Ghana, India, Israel, Italy, Nigeria, Scotland, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United States.
• Not Attending: Iran, South Africa, Japan, Mexico, Russia, and Brazil.
• Attending Remotely? China. The world seems unsure what China's participation will be right now.
• Also in attendance: tens of thousands of representatives from NGOs, the media, lobbyists, protestors, negotiators, major figureheads (like the Queen of England), and more.

Is this related to the "Paris Agreement"?

• Yes. The Paris Agreement happened at the 2015 COP21 in Paris. That summit was historic. For the first time, every country agreed to work together to limit global warming, with the aim of stopping it at 1.5 degrees Celsius  (34.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial temperatures. Each country was to develop a national plan for reducing emissions and stopping the trend towards global warming. They agreed to meet every five years with an updated plan. Last year was meant to be that first five year review. Delayed by the pandemic, it is happening this year instead.
  

Why do we need to stop global warming at 1.5 (C)/34.7(F) degrees?

• It has been predicted (based on huge amounts of scientific research conducted around the world) that global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (35.6 F) would be catastrophic. Warming to 1.5 will still cause a lot of trouble, but less catastrophic. The global community could work to adapt to this level of change.
• The four actions in focus at COP26 for keeping global warming at 1.5 C are: (1) accelerate the phase-out of coal, (2) decrease deforestation, (3) speed up the switch to electric vehicles, and (4) encourage investment in renewables.
• There are a lot of places to read more about this, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2018 Special Report for Policymakers.

What are the goals of COP26?

• The plans laid out after COP21 and the Paris Agreement have not made it possible to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees (C). In other words, we need new plans. That is what COP26 aims to do. Each country will be asked to submit their plans for reducing global warming in the next five years, plans that will feasibly stop the world's temperature rise at 1.5 degrees C.

Why is this summit important to countries like Greenland?

• It is important to all countries, as no one will be spared the impact that continued changes will have. But northern countries like Greenland are predicted to have especially severe impacts from a global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius. Ice melt, increased temperatures and increased precipitation could destroy  communities, as well as plant and animal species across the Arctic. Some communities are already feeling these effects, such as this one in Alaska. There is also a huge concern that this level of temperature change would destabilize the Greenland Ice Sheet (and the Antarctic one). Melted glaciers and ice sheets raise ocean levels. They could raise it to the point where most coastal cities will be flooded or submerged in the coming centuries if something doesn't change. There is a 'point of no return' that could happen rather soon. These melting masses of ice could even change the rotation of the earth. The amazing video below, directed by Scottish Researcher and Film-Maker Dr. Kieran Baxter, shows you just how fast these changes are happening in arctic countries. 
  

Is there hope in the face of what feels like impending doom?

• Yes. There is always hope. There is always work we can do. Remember that. Let's see what the world's leaders come up with over the next two weeks.

After Ice from Kieran Baxter on Vimeo.