From COP26

In October, I was selected to attend COP26 with a group of 20 other students from all across the UK.

For nearly three decades the UN has been bringing together almost every country on earth for global climate summits, called COP, which stands for ‘Conference of the Parties’. In that time climate change has gone from being a fringe issue to a global priority. From the 1st-12th of November we will be having the 26th annual summit, giving it the name COP26. With the UK as President, COP is taking place in Glasgow. I was lucky enough to travel to Glasgow and experience it first-hand.

I got to attend talks and panels and interviewed renowned individuals such as Zac Goldsmith, a British politician, life peer and journalist serving as Minister of State for Pacific and the Environment and member of the Conservative Party. He was its candidate at the 2016 London mayoral election and was Member of Parliament (MP) for Richmond Park from 2010 to 2016 and 2017 to 2019. I was also lucky enough to meet Kevin Courtney, General Secretary of the National Education Union, the largest teachers trade union, for England and Wales. We discussed the effects of climate change and the benefits of further educating students on this topic by adding it into the school curriculum.

FROM COP26

Scientifically and politically, 2020 was described as humanity’ s “last chance” to do something meaningful about climate change. Global emissions are at an all-time high and none of the big countries are on track to meet their obligations under the Paris Agreement (aims to hold the increase in the global average temperature to “well below” 2°C above pre-industrial levels). COP26 is the biggest international summit the UK has ever hosted; bringing together over 30,000 delegates including heads of state, climate experts and campaigners.

There is a lot of pressure on the talks to deliver meaningful commitments to action with UN Secretary-General António Guterres saying: “I am more determined than ever to work for 2020 to be the year in which all countries commit to do what science tells us is necessary.” At COP25, Greta Thunberg delivered a brutally honest appraisal of COPs saying: “Finding holistic solutions is what COP should be all about. But instead, it seems to have turned into some kind of opportunity for countries to negotiate loopholes and to avoid raising their ambitions.”

COPs are organised into two zones; the inner Blue Zone and the outer Green Zone. The inner Blue Zone is beyond the security cordon and only Ministers, accredited government officials plus other accredited individuals and organisations get into this area.

The main business within the Blue Zone is the international negotiations over climate change agreements and actions. Within the Blue Zone each country or territory has a pavilion where they showcase what they are doing on climate change. Within the pavilions, countries want to put on a programme of interesting exhibitions, speakers, receptions, presentations, etc. Beyond the Blue Zone is the Green Zone. Within the Green Zone, organisations that secure space have their own ‘pavilion’, exhibition or event to show what they are doing about climate change or get their climate change message to a wider audience.

Attending COP26 has inspired me to make a change, and to do as much as I can to help overcome the issue that is climate change.