How could I describe this week in 500 words? I couldn’t even do it in 500! (I tried to do it in ~40…) I am so excited to read the entries of my classmates who will are currently en route to Madrid to attend the 2nd and final week of the COP. How will their experiences differ from ours? What conclusions will they draw from what I’ve heard some attendees call “crunch week”?
In my most recent short reflection, I expressed my concern about the pace and scale at which the United Nations is capable of delivering climate action. This week was an extraordinary opportunity for me to encounter a massive community of some of the most devoted climate activists across the world. I was exposed to technological solutions that, at scale, could begin to address the climate crisis. I saw expressions of high-level political support from the United States, India, China, and Western European nations, some of the largest emitters on the planet.
Despite these promising and inspiring moments from the COP, I’m left with deep worry that those working on climate action at the highest level are still working within a timeframe that is much too generous. I repeatedly heard people say this COP was not a particularly important one in negotiations. Apparently, all eyes are trained on COP26 which will be held in Glasgow. This Conference will coincide with the very consequential year of 2020.
In this year, progress towards the goals set out in the Paris Agreement in 2015 will be assessed. (Spoiler: we’re not on track.) Countries will also be required (read: kindly asked) to ratchet up the ambition of their NDCs, or nationally determined contributions. The NDCs set out in the Paris Agreement, even though they are voluntary and suggest no legally binding commitments for their respective nations, are not, in their current form, ambitious enough to limit global temperature rise to non-catastrophic levels.
We can’t afford to describe COP25 as a foundational COP. We also can’t hope that countries will adequately increase the ambition of their NDCs in 2020. A winning strategy on climate action is not one defined by complacency or unrealistic expectations.
Throughout this week, I have been inspired by the youth protesters who are demanding more immediate action than the UN system has been willing to provide. One of their oft-repeated refrains is: “What do we want? Climate Justice! When do we want it? Now!” Let’s linger on that last word: now. Any delegate who treats the COP25 as a waiting year, a foundational year to prepare for future climate action, is ignoring a clock that seems to keep ticking faster and faster.
Watching the pace and focus on the Week 1 negotiations in the COP this year, I’m not filled with hope that these delegates will deliver immediate and meaningful climate action. On Friday evening, half a million people marched in Madrid to demand action from world leaders on the climate crisis. Their message is simple: we cannot afford to spend any more time conducting business as usual.
