COP 28: Frustration, Scepticism, Faint Trace of Hope

COP 28 is the upcoming UN conference on climate change. Find out why the mood leading into this global gathering is a blend of frustration, scepticism and just a faint trace of wary hope.

When the Rio Earth Summit wrapped up 30 years ago, people like me, who belonged to environmental groups, saw it as a turning point. We knew the agreements reached at that gathering would be the templates for future progress.

Yet, even then, we had mixed feelings about the results. We felt vindicated by the environment making its way to the top of the UN’s agenda, but we were also sceptical and disappointed that the participating nations hadn’t gone far enough.

In both senses, the Rio Summit really was a template for everything that’s followed. The recurring themes in the efforts Rio spawned, like the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement, have been modest success mingled with disappointing procrastination.

Annual Conference to Review Progress and Plan Next Steps

The Rio Summit produced the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). Every year, the UN holds a conference of that agreement’s parties to…