What is COP26, UNFCCC, SDGs, NDCs, Net Zero, IPCC, climate finance and the COP26 signed declaration.
At the UN conference in Glasgow, this Wednesday was another day of new announcements and promises made. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that 110 countries, representing 85 percent of the world’s forests, had signed the COP26 Declaration, committing to halt forest loss by 2030 and then begin restoring it. Johnson emphasized that China, Russia and Brazil had also joined the pledge, which he said could create millions of new jobs, the UN press service reported.
The heads of state and government who signed the declaration promise to intensify common efforts to preserve forests and other terrestrial ecosystems, as well as speed up their restoration. The text also speaks of the need to empower indigenous peoples, primarily those suffering from the thoughtless exploitation of natural resources and forest degradation. The document includes the financial obligations of forum participants. Over the past decade, approximately 40 times more money has been spent on destructive land management practices than on land conservation, restoration, and transition to sustainable agricultural practices.
The commitment, also signed by more than 30 financial institutions with a combined capital of $8.7 trillion, is intended to change the current situation.
At COP26, representatives from more than 100 governments, cities, regions and major businesses signed the Zero Emission Cars and Vans Declaration, which aims to eliminate the sale of internal combustion engines in the world’s major markets by 2035, and worldwide by 2040. world.
At least 13 countries have committed to ending the sale of heavy-duty fossil fuel-powered vehicles by 2040. Representatives of several Latin American cities, including Bogota, Cuenca and El Salvador, have set a goal of switching to zero-emission public transport by 2035.
COP – UN Conference of the Parties ((COP) UNFCCC)
UNFCCC – The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was developed as a result of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, which was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The stated goal of the UNFCCC is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions necessary to prevent dangerous human-caused climate change. Currently, 197 countries and one interstate association – the European Union – are parties to the Convention.
Conferences of the Parties, or COPs, are formal meetings that have been held annually since 1995. The only exception was 2020: due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference of the parties had to be postponed for a year.
The SDGs, the Sustainable Development Goals, address various issues facing humanity, from access to clean energy to poverty reduction and responsible consumption. Together, the SDGs make up the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the UN’s plan to achieve peace and prosperity for people and the planet.
NDCs – Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are a key element of the Paris Climate Agreement. In fact, these are obligations of specific countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the national level and to adapt to the consequences of climate change. In accordance with the provisions of the Paris Agreement, each Party prepares and submits to the UN Climate Secretariat its NDCs that it intends to achieve, and also takes national measures to mitigate the effects of climate change. Following their commitments under the Paris Agreement, countries have submitted their national plans to the UN.
Net zero is a concept that involves the maximum reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, that is, to a level when the number of such gases in the atmosphere does not increase, and all industrial and other emissions are absorbed by forests and the ocean. This can be achieved, for example, through a transition to a green economy and clean, renewable energy sources.
IPCC – The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a special UN body for assessing the scientific evidence related to climate change. Established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the IPCC provides governments at all levels with scientific information that can be used to develop policies to combat climate change.
Climate finance, climate finance, refers to money that needs to be spent on a range of activities to reduce climate change-causing emissions and help people adapt and become more resilient to the already existing impacts of climate change. This refers to funding at the local, national or transnational levels, which can be obtained from public, private and other sources of funding.