COP28 opened on Thursday November 30 in Dubai (United Arab Emirates). Record temperatures, catastrophic floods in the Horn of Africa, or even devastating fires in the forests of Canada: faced with the consequences of climate change, world leaders are now meeting until December 12 to make new collective commitments. The discussions are chaired by the Emirati Sultan al-Jaber. During his opening speech, he mentioned the role of fossil fuels, which emit a lot of greenhouse gases. “We must find a way to include responsibility for fossil fuels”, said the man who is also boss of the national oil company Adnoc. He spoke in particular of companies such as his: “I’m grateful that they’ve stepped up their pace. But I have to say: it’s not enough. And I know they can do so much more.” Follow our live stream.
The opening ceremony took place late in the morning. The President of COP27, the Egyptian Sameh Shoukry, spoke there before passing the torch to Sultan al-Jaber. “Let us never lose sight of our polar star, 1.5°C”, declared the latter, applauded by the audience. Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and finally Jim Skea, President of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) also spoke.
Big stakes. All eyes will be on the terms adopted on the energy transition, from fossil fuels to renewables. A crucial transition to succeed in limiting warming to 1.5°C compared to the pre-industrial era, the objective of the Paris agreement. Delegations from around the world will also discuss finance, as expert groups estimate that the world needs to invest more than $3 trillion a year (around €2.737 billion) by 2030 to reach the climate objectives set. So far, developed countries are far from it, whether it concerns investments for the energy transition or adaptation to the consequences of climate change.
The heads of state present from Friday. The leaders’ summit will take place on December 1 and 2. Among others expected for a speech will be Emmanuel Macron, Charles Michel, President of the European Council and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President Ukrainian Volodymyr Zelensky or even the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley. Initially expected, Pope Francis ultimately canceled his trip for health reasons.
Ask your questions about COP28. What is the COP for? What progress can be negotiated there? How can we move away from all oil and accelerate the development of renewable energies? This is the subject of “The Carbon(n)e Footprint” on franceinfo. By clicking on this link, you can ask all your questions to a panel of experts.