COP29 Climate Change Summit Opens in Azerbaijan
Climate activists protest ahead of COP29, Nov. 11, 2024. X/ @nabiyevcavid
November 11, 2024 Hour: 9:11 am
This UN event, however, will not feature the presence of presidents Biden, Putin, Xi, Lula da Silva, and Macron.
On Monday, the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), or COP29, kicked off in Azerbaijan’s capital city of Baku.
RELATED:
All Sectors Have a Role to Play in Meeting the Climate Challenge: OPEC
This year’s climate conference is aimed at seeking a new climate change funding goal to replace the existing collective target of mobilizing and providing US$100 billion annually by developed countries in support of developing countries. The conference, scheduled for Nov. 11-22, will also focus on such topics as global carbon trading market, as well as global energy transition from fossil fuels.
The new goal “must be effective and adequate” to address the urgent problems, said Mukhtar Babayev, the COP29 president-designate and Azerbaijan’s ecology minister at the opening ceremony. He added that the goal should also “address the needs and priorities of developing countries” and include detailed qualitative elements.
The parties “must agree on a new global climate finance goal,” said Simon Stiell, executive secretary of UNFCCC, calling on participants to work harder to reform the global financial system.
“It is the moment of truth. It will not be easy. This summit will be an opportunity for development. We can build the point but everyone has to cross it,” he stressed, urging participants to ensure that COP29 is “inclusive and transparent” in order to provide solutions for the entire planet in the face of the climate emergency.
“If the problem is not stopped, it will lead to a three-degree warming of the planet,” Stiell stated, recalling that this potential scenario would cause a catastrophic situation for millions of people.
The Conference of the Parties (COP) refers to a series of formal meetings where governments assess global efforts to advance the Paris Agreement and UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, with the aim of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
This UN high-level event, however, will not feature the presence of leaders of countries whose actions could substantially contribute to avoiding global warming. Among those who will not be present at COP29 are German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Presidents Joe Biden (USA), Vladimir Putin (Russia), Xi Jinping (China), Lula da Silva (Brazil), and Emmanuel Macron (France).
teleSUR/ JF Sources: Xinhua – EFE
