November this year was a pivotal moment for the planet, as the
countries of the world gathered in Glasgow, UK, for the UN Climate Change
Conference, COP26. After two years of marathon work and a two-week sprint of
negotiations, we achieved our aim and almost 200 countries agreed on the
Glasgow Climate Pact. By any measure, this is a historic agreement and one of
which all 197 parties can be proud. We can credibly say that we kept in reach
our goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels in
reach.
اضافة اعلان
COP26 was the
biggest political gathering of any kind held in the UK. Glasgow hosted
representatives from 194 countries, 120 world leaders, with 38,000 accredited
delegates in attendance.
From outside,
the negotiations may have appeared incredibly technocratic. But so much was at
stake. They were about protecting the lives and livelihoods of those on the
frontline of the climate crisis. And shielding future generations who, if we
fail, will be condemned to live in a dangerous, uncertain and depleted world.
As Barbadian
Prime Minister Mia Mottley said at COP26, for small island states, “1.5 is what
we need to survive. Two degrees is a death sentence”.
Science tells us
the world is already on average 1.1°C warmer than in pre-industrial times and
we can see the acute effects of this on millions of people. Extreme weather is
on the rise across the world and climate change does not recognise national
borders.
The global
cooperation we have seen in this COP process should give the world hope. There
may have been some disagreements, but in a world of fractured global politics,
countries showed a unity of purpose on climate. There was growth in trust
between nations and a genuine determination to reach agreement.
Driven by the
latest science, our Glasgow Climate Pact recognizes the gulf between where
countries are on commitments to reduce emissions and where we need to be. It
emphasizes the urgent need for faster action. And it commits countries to
revisit and strengthen their 2030 emissions reductions targets where necessary
in 2022.
For the first
time, the pact commits countries to a plan to move away from coal power and
inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies. And after six years of discussions, it
finalizes the outstanding elements of the Paris rulebook — the rules governing
the Paris agreement on climate change signed in 2015 — the resolution of which
will unleash its full potential.
The pact also
makes progress on finance for climate action, on adaptation, to protect people
and nature from the effects of climate change, and on loss and damage resulting
from the climate crisis, all vital issues in the fight against climate change.
Outside the
negotiating halls, at COP26 we welcomed announcements of net zero targets, as
well as commitments that accelerate the move to clean power and clean cars, put
the brakes on deforestation, and that increase the finance flowing to climate
action. These valuable agreements, alongside our Glasgow Climate Pact, begin to
fill in the details of how we will pick up the pace in response to the immense
global challenge of climate change to keep the 1.5 degree limit alive.
For example,
with the commitments made in Glasgow, net zero targets now cover 90 percent of
the world’s economy, up from 30 percent at the start of the UK taking on COP26.
Jordan’s
ambitious Nationally Determined Contribution, aiming to reduce emissions by 31
percent by 2030, is a strong step in the right direction and is an example to
the region. Implementation now depends on long-term strategies to support
policy decisions.
We also welcomed
initiatives like the $8.5 billion Just Energy Transition Partnership with South
Africa, supporting the move to clean power, and witnessed countries home to
more than 90 percent of the world’s forests pledge to halt and reverse forest
loss.
We saw the
highest single mobilisation to the Adaptation Fund, which enables communities
most vulnerable to climate change to protect themselves.
Jordan’s
adaptation needs, from dealing with water scarcity to transitioning to climate
smart agriculture, to planning for extreme weather events, are great. We will
do all we can to support Jordan to access the Adaptation Fund to make the
changes necessary to mitigate the worst impacts of climate change.
Glasgow was a
historic collective achievement, but it is a fragile win. We can say with
credibility that the 1.5°C limit lives. But its pulse remains weak. It is up to
every country now to protect and strengthen it over the coming years.
That is why the
UK’s work as the COP26 presidency is really only just beginning. Over the
course of the next year, we will work with countries, urging them to take
action and honour their promises set out in the Glasgow Pact to increase
climate ambition to 2030 and beyond. There is no formal policing process in the
UN climate change system, and so we must keep up the constructive pressure, and
build on the trust and goodwill generated through COP26.
We must grasp
this moment. The world must now step up and take further action on finance, on
adaptation, and on 1.5C. We owe to people on the frontline of climate change,
and to future generations, to deliver what we agreed on in Glasgow.
The writer is the British ambassador to
Jordan.
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