Do the preparation task first. Then read the article and do the exercises.
Preparation
The consequences of global warming are being seen all over the world. Droughts, floods, heatwaves and other extreme weather conditions are becoming more and more frequent. Polar ice caps are melting, and sea levels are rising. Climate change is a major threat to ecosystems and to humanity. Every year, world leaders meet at the COP summit to review the UN goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius and to discuss the action that still needs to be taken.
What is a COP?
This year the 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference will be held 11–22 November 2024, in Baku, Azerbaijan. The event is also known as COP29 – 'COP' stands for 'Conference of the Parties'. It usually takes place every year, and the venue, as well as the COP presidency, rotates among the five different UN regions (Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Central and Eastern Europe, and Western Europe and Others).
The Paris Agreement
The Paris Agreement remains a key part of global climate efforts. This agreement was adopted in 2015, during the COP21 summit in Paris. With this agreement, almost every country in the world committed to cut CO2 emissions as rapidly as possible, in order to limit global warming to well below 2°C, aiming for 1.5°C. However, despite the commitments made in Paris, the progress made is not enough. The world is still failing to meet the targets necessary to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
What are the aims of COP29?
The goal of the COP29 conference is to take faster action to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement, with a focus on the finance required for countries to drastically reduce CO2 emissions. The 2024 event aims to:
- encourage countries to set more ambitious targets for reducing emissions, with the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C
- increase finance to help developing countries reduce emissions and adapt to climate change
- ensure an inclusive and fair process, particularly supporting developing countries in climate negotiations.
As the effects of climate change become more and more devastating, it is crucial that country leaders, experts and environmental campaigners come together to work on the biggest challenge the world faces today.
Becoming inclusive and being included in climate change is a good step moving forward- considering that developing countries have less concerns when it comes to Climate. However, the change might come from those poorer countries since bigger ones haven't shown enough commitment to the agreement, especially the Paris agreement; to an extent that today's superpower has a president who have claimed to put off the deal by withdrawing from that agreement. I really wish that we could just comprehend that stepping in and actually agreeing on something is a courageous act a politician or a person must take, putting aside any personal gain; will make that summit successful.
First of all, I appreciate your article as it is easy to understand what the aims of the COP29 are. The objectives are to persuade inclusion of all countries especially the developing ones by providing the monetary support.
What I would like to surplus is to take action the people who act illegally in the environmental issues. Moreover, to educate the public about the consequences of their activities like what the future generation will face the difficulties of theirs. Not even the future, the whole world is already suffering from the past events. So, to be educated should be the one of the solutions and if they don't obey the prescribed law, the authorities should act seriously which are not only to individuals but also to organizations and other businesses.