Eduardo Ferreira, Aline Barreto Moraes de Castro Philodemos, Camila Argentino, Gabriela Doll Martinelli and Isabel Monteiro de Barros Alfano
That are several expectations about the 26th edition of the Conference of the Parties (Conference of Parties – COP), which will be held between October 31st and November 12th in Glasgow, Scotland.
The COP aims to discuss, review, monitor and implement the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change - UNFCCC (Convenção-Quadro das Nações Unidas sobre Mudança Climática).
The UNFCCC is an international treaty signed by 197 countries at the United Nations Conference for the Environment and Development (Conferência das Nações Unidas para o Meio Ambiente e o Desenvolvimento), held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The main purposes of the treaty are to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change, limit the increase in global average temperature and minimize the concentration of greenhouse gases, among other aspects that may impact the planet’s environmental balance.
Expectations emerge mainly from the fact that the convention was not held in 2020, due to the covid-19 pandemic.
In addition, the current edition of the conference is the fifth to be held since the signing of the Paris Agreement (Acordo de Paris), which was signed at the 2015 COP in the French capital. At the time, it was agreed that the signatory parties would present, every five years, an updated planning related to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. At this year's meeting, therefore, world leaders will have to communicate their efforts and update their respective countries' commitments to the matter.
Among the topics to be discussed are the carbon market, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, annual climate financing, reduction of deforestation on a global scale, updates and compliance with the rules of the Paris Agreement, as well as the establishment of collaborative, adaptation and mitigation measures related to environmental impacts.
Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which cover some of the instruments for the creation of a global carbon market, is one of the main topics on the agenda. This market remains unregulated, requiring objective and viable definitions by the signatory countries.
Funding to address climate matters will also be in focus. Developed countries have pledged to invest at least $100 billion a year, by 2020, to address the climate crisis and help developing countries to reduce fossil fuel emissions and adapt to the impacts of the crisis. The conference will address such matter and verify the implementation of this measure worldwide.
In addition to these matters, actions are expected to be discussed to allow adaptation to climate change and mitigation of its effects, such as the adoption of low-carbon technologies, incentive to research, adoption of green economy, among others, aiming to reduce the loss of ecosystems and protect communities, especially those already affected by climate change.
There are also expectations on Brazil's performance. Potentially, the country has much to collaborate with environmental preservation, since it has good legal provisions related to the subject, such as the Forest Code, and holds the largest preserved green area in the world. We have 500 million hectares of tropical forests, which means a huge capacity to remove and stock carbon. Our forests, therefore, are essential for the stabilization of the global climate, which makes it essential to progressively implement more initiatives related to environmental preservation.
What is certain is that COP-26 will seek to establish new measures to lead signatory parties to reduce the effects of climate change and its impacts on society.
