COP28 begins: 4 issues that will determine if the UN climate summit is a success, from methane to money
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)
(THE CONVERSATION) The United Nations climate conference is underway in Dubai, and representatives from around the world will be confronting an extraordinary array of challenges over its two weeks. They carry with them some long-held – and new – grievances, and strong expectations.
Framing the agenda is a “global stocktake” – an assessment of progress toward the 2015 Paris Agreement to keep global warming in check. Unsurprisingly, as record-breaking extreme heat has underscored so powerfully in 2023, the world is not on track.
To cut emissions, progress is needed on national economic and fiscal policies, such as taxing pollution and ending subsidies for fossil fuels that are even higher today than before the pandemic, and on funds and commitments to speed a global energy and economic transformation. Funding for adaptation and disaster recovery is also high on the agenda.
There is an undercurrent of deep skepticism in some quarters about the leadership of this year’s COP28 president, Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber, who also heads the United Arab Emirates’ national oil company. Recent news reports suggest the UAE may have muddled its roles by...