"Answers to all your questions about COP26 Glasgow, the world's most important and confusing climate conference."
"Perhaps you’ve heard about the Paris Agreement or countries getting together to talk about climate change under the banner of the United Nations, but you’re confused about what’s actually going on. Don’t worry, you’re not alone.
Even people who have spent a lot of time thinking about climate change often have a poor understanding of the United Nations climate process—which, unfortunately, happens to be both one of the most important and most confusing things happening on the planet. Here’s your primer to understand what is COP26, what on the Earth is the UNFCCC is, and why you should care. Welcome to COP101!
COP is an acronym for “Conference of Parties.” In UN-speak, a COP is analogous to a meeting of Congress or another legislative body, except they’re just talking about climate change all the time. (Imagine if Congress were like that!) In climate land, COPs convene to deal with matters related to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, or UNFCCC, which is the big UN treaty that dictates that countries need to come together to figure out how to stop global warming."
Molly Taft reports for Earther October 26, 2021.
SEE ALSO:
"The Make-Or-Break Climate Summit: Here’s What’s At Stake at Cop26" (Guardian)
"It’s Time for COP26. Here’s Where We Stand." (New York Times)
"The COP26 Summit To Fight Climate Change Is About To Start. Here's What To Expect" (NPR)
"These 4 Charts Explain Why The Stakes Are So High At The U.N. Climate Summit" (NPR)
"What’s At Stake At The COP26 Climate Summit? Here’S A Guide To The Make-Or-Break Issues" (CNBC)
"Five Important Questions About COP26 Answered" (Smithsonian)
"COP26: SDG or NDC? Our Guide To The Language You Need To Know" (UN)
