COP28 is the 28th annual Conference of Parties (COP), an international climate summit held as an international treaty of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Taking place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the summit runs from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12 and will be hosting world government leaders, scientists, researchers, and experts. Here, they’ll discuss and address current issues that hurt the environment, like heat waves, sea levels rising, global warming, and more.
First item on the docket? An assessment of global climate progress since COP21 — an assessment known as the first Global Stocktake (GST).
What kind of progress? Let’s rewind eight years for a recap:
The 2015 Paris Agreement was adopted at COP21, hosted in Paris, where 194 countries (195 including the European Union) committed to keeping global temperature increases well below 2 degrees Celsius and ideally 1.5 degrees.
Still, last year’s COP27 had countries butting heads about phasing out fossil fuels. Of course, most of the world is on board, save for some of the biggest fossil fuel producers like Russia and Saudi Arabia.
This year, COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber is adamantly advocating action that keeps the world well below the 1.5-degree increase, and that includes capturing fossil fuel emissions, but not disqualifying them completely.
Here are a few event topics on the docket at COP28:
- Cleantech and AI: The road to net-zero is pathed almost completely with innovative tech like digital twin technology, the internet of things (IoT), cloud computing, AI, satellite mapping, and other tech types that the conference will speak to.
- Upskilling and education: With the rise of green and cleantech as long-standing climate solutions, the labour force needs to keep up with all the technical skills required to operate and develop the technology. COP28 has a few panels and lectures about sustainable digital skills, green skills, and sustainability leadership initiatives for youth and students.
- Financing: Developing countries are in more need of financing than ever to come close to reaching their climate goals. Various panels discuss inclusive finance architecture, the role of philanthropy, tech startups, family offices, organic waste removal, affordable tech, and digital private-public relationships for climate financing.
Interested in learning more about the panels, topics, or schedule?
Check out the COP28 UAE website for more details.
