By Padmaja Thirumalai
Staff Writer
The annual Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on climate change met in November, according to Nature. The event consists of global countries gathering together to discuss plans on how to tackle climate change.
According to the BBC, about 50,000 delegates attended COP29. This includes representatives from the United Nations, diplomats, climate scientists, union leaders and environmental activists.
But other leaders from some of the largest economies and carbon-emitters were absent from COP29, including India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, United States President Joe Biden, China’s President Xi Jinping and European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen.
This year’s meeting was held in Baku, Azerbaijan from Nov. 11-22. However, the location of this year’s conference drew concern from some, as the country is trying to expand its gas production by a third. According to BBC, some observers worried that the country would thus shift the focus away from fossil fuels when they are a large factor of climate change. BBC also reported that Azerbaijan officials were using this conference to boost investment for their oil and gas company.
According to Nature, the The Nature Conservancy staff was at the forefront of COP29 suggesting some solutions. Some of TNC’s priorities include eliminating fossil fuels, building strong societies that adapt to variations in climate and investing in financial flow towards climate.
According to The Global Climate and Health Alliance, the international health and climate community also called upon COP29 to deliver climate change solutions that would ensure the health of people and the planet. Some of their solutions were to collaborate with the most impacted communities, building strong and sustainable agriculture and ecosystems, enabling finance and prioritizing holistic adaptation.
In COP29, countries advocated for more renewable energy and investment from both public and private sectors to help those countries who were impacted severely by climate change.
During the conference, countries have also agreed to triple the target financing amount for addressing climate change, partly to aid developing countries. The countries have committed to donate $300 billion in climate finance annually until 2035. The money would also help them cope with varying climate changes and shift away from fossil fuels.
According to VOA, Germany has pledged $62 million, France has pledged $3 billion and the U.S. pledged $3 billion each year to the adaptation fund. However, developing and poor countries are not satisfied with this contribution. They say that more money should have been contributed when billions of people’s lives were at stake.
Until the next meeting, there are some 2024 COP agenda that the countries are focusing on. According to CGIAR, all countries will try to put efforts to limit global warming, adapt to impacts of climate change and mobilize financial resources. According to the United Nations Environmental Program, the COP29’s priorities indicate that countries will tackle extreme heat by increasing investment rates and will take action into sustainable cooling.
