World leaders have gathered in Glasgow, Scotland News Today for the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The conference opened with a warning from UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, that the world was on track for a catastrophic temperature rise of 2.7 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, far above the 1.5 degrees goal set by the 2015 Paris Agreement. Many countries made pledges to curb their carbon emissions.
China, the world’s biggest emitter, pledged to stop building coal-fired power plants overseas, and aim to peak emissions by the end of this decade. India, another major emitter, pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070. The European Union pledged to reduce emissions by at least 55% by 2030, and the United States, another major emitter, pledged a 50% cut in emissions by 2030, compared to 2005 levels. However, some countries like Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Brazil, made no new commitments to cut emissions.
Brazil was criticized for not having a plan to curb deforestation in the Amazon rainforest, which is contributing to the rise in emissions. Environmental groups were disappointed by the outcome of the conference, saying the pledges made fell short of what was needed to avoid catastrophic climate change. However, many still saw it as progress, and a turning point in the fight against climate change.