WHAT IS COP 27?

The Conference of the Parties (COP) is a coalition of countries that have signed the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It is the UNFCCC’s principal decision-making committee. It comprises representatives from all nations that have signed up to the UNFCCC as signatories or “Parties.” The COP evaluates the effectiveness of actions implemented by the Parties to prevent climate change against the UNFCCC’s ultimate aim.

COPs have achieved important accords throughout the decades to address the climate catastrophe, improve resilience to climate change consequences, and raise funding for aggressive climate action. Countries and other relevant parties laid forward a series of promises last year at COP26 that the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicted would limit the Earth’s rising temperatures to 1.8 degrees Celsius if completely implemented.

This year, the Egyptian coastal city of Sharm El-Sheikh will host COP 27 from November 6 to November 18.

COP 27 provides yet another significant chance to take immediate action. To avert the disastrous effects of climate change, everyone must work together to develop a quick, comprehensive solution. To accomplish this, expediting the global implementation of prevention, adaptation, and funding priorities is necessary. It provides another chance for countries to work together to achieve these goals while we confront a global issue.

The United Nations Conference on Climate Change will unite nations to boost initiatives to solve climate catastrophes. It is a crucial gathering because new evidence suggests that climate change is accelerating far more rapidly than we are, putting ecosystems and communities at risk.
Considering the current situation, Egypt has proposed its own perspective for COP 27:

Vision and Objectives

1. Mitigation

ln order to reduce the emissions and keep the rise in average world temperature well under 2°C and explore measures to keep it below 1.5°C, it is critical to take decisive and rapid action, as well as to raise motivation from all stakeholders, especially those in a position to “lead by example”

At COP 27, governments will get the opportunity to deliver on their commitments to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement in a quest to improve the enforcement of the convention. The Glasgow Pact request to assess ambition in NDCs and set a work program for mitigation ambition should be implemented this year.

2. Adaptation

Among the most notable results of COP26 was the Global Goal on Adaptation. Suppose we are to gather and evaluate our progress toward strengthening resilience and aiding the most vulnerable communities. COP27 must accomplish crucial progress in that case and encourage all parties to exhibit the required political commitment.

COP 27 should see an improved policy strategy for adaptation, reinforcing what we agreed on in Paris and further defined in the Glasgow agreement in terms of putting adaptation at the heart of global action.

3. Finance

It is imperative that we make considerable development on the significant challenge of climate finance during COP 27 while pushing ahead on all financial planning and analysis matters.

Climate finance must be efficient and dependable to meet the Paris Agreement’s climate obligations. More transparency of financial flows and increased access are needed to meet the needs of developing nations, notably Africa, LDCs, and SIDS.

Progress on delivering the yearly USD 100 billion would foster more confidence between rich and developing countries by demonstrating that genuine promises are being met.

4. Collaboration 

Improving and promoting consensus in discussions is critical for COP 27 to accomplish meaningful outcomes in a balanced way. Expanding collaborative relationships will help us achieve our four goals and ensure that society adopts a much more secure and sustainable economic framework in which humanity is at the heart of climate negotiations.

We must bring innovative ideas and technologies to assist in mitigating the negative effects of climate change.

5. Loss and Damage

The countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change are mainly developing countries that have contributed much less to the current climate emergency and are therefore calling for a loss and damage mechanism that channels specific funding.

Action to clarify support for loss and damage, with the increasing impacts of more frequent extreme weather events and speeding slow onset events, it is time to respond to the calls and needs for an effective mechanism that delivers on the requirements for action and support in particular for those who are most vulnerable to the climate change impacts.

The primary areas that must be addressed to achieve COP 27’s objective are as follows:

COP 27’s primary objectives

1. Climate adaptation

Climate change’s negative consequences are growing more prevalent. The most deprived areas, which are the lowest contributors to climate change and have the fewest resources to deal with its consequences, will remain on the front lines.

To address these problems, coordinated international intervention is necessary, including substantial public and hybrid funding, forging new multistakeholder collaborations, and continuing to focus on creative climate adaptation solutions.

2. Food Security

The food system and climate change are interlinked via the principle of causality, with the agro-food system being the cause of up to 1/3^rd of the greenhouse emissions that proceed to have catastrophic implications on food productivity. According to the IPCC, climate change has already lowered land production by 21%.

Agro-based prices have surged due to the food crisis, compounded by the conflict in Ukraine, strained distribution networks, and rising energy expenses.

Governments, companies, and stakeholders must work together to achieve climate-resilient food systems that meet the world’s expanding requirements. At COP 27, there will be a focus on how we scale the solutions needed to meet our growing food requirement in a climate-resilient manner, which will include commercializing advanced technologies and encouraging sustainable agricultural practices, which are often more climate-resilient than industrial farming techniques.

3. Emission reduction

The global East and South are experiencing an extraordinary surge of urbanization, and the resources necessary to produce low-carbon, climate-resilient communities will be a critical component of the answer to achieving emissions reductions.

About 30% of greenhouse gas emissions are caused by the transportation of materials and chemicals for construction and industrialization. As a result, clean solutions must be cost-effective to shift away from carbon-intensive old ways. Collaboration among government agencies, corporations, financiers, and innovators must be strengthened for a smooth transition to cost-effective clean technologies.

Source: GHG emissions by sector

Conclusion

The results of COP 27 will considerably influence public faith in climate discussions. It may be easier to reconstruct with agreements to give thorough and fast economic assistance, as well as significant progress on loss and damage, adaptation, and collaboration in this process.

To accord with the mission and vision of COP 27, we must take measures to aid people and the environment in adapting to a rapidly changing climate, as well as implement climate solutions, which are now available across all sectors and have the potential to reduce emissions by more than half by 2030. This is critical if we keep global warming to 1.5°C and prevent the most disastrous consequences for people and wildlife.

Also Read: Green Energy Transition: An Unjust Burden On Indigenous Communities