What You Need to Know About COP 28

Representatives from around 200 countries will convene from November 30 to December 12 to discuss global action on the climate crisis. This annual event, known as COP, takes place in a different city every year. Dubai, UAE, will host COP 28 in 2023.

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What is COP?

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COP stands for Conference of the Parties and is a platform where delegates from governments across the world come together and discuss, present, and negotiate their goals for tackling climate change.

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Apart from government officials, there are climate experts from the UN and representatives from various environmental and sustainability groups, youth organizations, women’s rights groups, Indigenous peoples, business groups, trade unions, farmers, and other delegates.

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The most historic moment in the history of COP happened at COP 21 in Paris in 2015 when 197 countries negotiated and signed the first international climate agreement. In the agreement, governments committed to keeping global temperature increases well below 2°C (3.6 °F) above pre-industrial levels, with the goal of limiting global heating to 1.5°C (2.7 °F).

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With the final goal in mind, countries annually discuss their progress towards these objectives and their strategies for mitigating and adapting to climate change.

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The host country sets the tone and the direction of each COP and for COP 2023, it would be done by UAE.

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What can we expect at COP 28?

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Apart from discussing the progress of the Paris Agreement, COP 28 will be focused on 4 areas:

Fast-tracking the energy transition and slashing emissions before 2030 to limit global warming to 1.5° C (2.7° F) above pre-industrial levels.
Putting nature, people lives, and livelihoods at the heart of climate action, including helping the most vulnerable communities adapt to the change that’s already occurring.
Delivering old promises and setting the framework for a new deal on finance. Climate finance must be affordable, available, and accessible to developing countries.
Mobilizinge the most inclusive COP ever, ensuring that decisions and discussions, and how the solutions are implemented, are truly inclusive and done in collaboration with Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

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Sultan Al Jaber who is the CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, one of the biggest fossil fuel companies, is the president of COP 2023. This move has been criticized by some politicians and campaigners since fossil fuel companies are one of the biggest contributors to the climate crisis.

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On the other hand, Al Jaber is also the CEO of UAE's renewables company, Masdar. His position at Masdar has garnered him supporters who believe that his knowledge of the energy business is an advantage.

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