COP26: What are the main challenges to overcome?

Leaders from around the world are now settled in Glasgow for the COP26 climate summit. We all know how hard it can be sometimes to find an agreement when we work on common projects with different teams in our companies - so, imagine how hard it can be to find an agreement among different countries with different cultures and different needs? But one thing is for certain, COP26 will have to overcome several different challenges. In this blog we will detail five major issues that Matt McGrath (a journalist covering climate change for the past 15 years, reporting from 10 COPs along the way) found. 

1. Do you believe in the other team?

When we work with other teams in our company, there could be people that we don’t really get along with. In the case of COP26, we are talking about USA and China. After initially finding an agreement at the major climate conference in Paris in 2015, which President Trump withdrew from during his administration, the two countries now have big rivalries that extend beyond the COP – which could lead to a no-deal at the end of the two weeks in Glasgow. On top of that, money is always a hot topic during these conferences, and the failure of the international community to make good on the delivery of a long-promised $100bn to help poorer countries cope with climate change has gone down badly. 

2. Is the lead team reliable?

The host nation has a fundamental role in this summit, and the UK seems to have some challenges to overcome. The UK government promised to achieve net-zero by 2050 during the 2015 Paris summit, but has run into trouble over plans for a coal mine in Cumbria and by announcing cuts to air passenger duty just last week. Finally, the cut to Overseas Development Aid (ODA), which saw the UK's annual support reduced from 0.7% of national income to 0.5%, makes the host nation’s credibility shake. 

3. How much needs to be discussed?

COVID 19 and virtual COP didn’t go really well last year, as delegates refused to take any decisions until they met face to face. This means that Glasgow’s agenda is pretty busy, and the huge backlog can potentially cause delays, which means not getting all the work done. 

4. How is the process?

197 parties need to give consensus, plus legalistic and technical debates can lead to a lot of talk, but no action before the end of the two weeks. "There has to be an accountability factor because otherwise, countries can pledge anything and can promise anything" These are the words of Dr. Deborah Brosnan, who's advising the Antigua and Barbuda team in Glasgow. 

5. What is success?

As we said at the beginning, different countries mean different needs and different challenges to overcome. It is clear that the success of COP26 can have different shapes based on the different countries' requirements. The parties will have to avoid finishing the summit with a lot of political declarations that aspire to do more, but ultimately not resulting in any action. 

We can’t promise you that COP26 be able to overcome these issues and to create a clear roadmap for all countries around the world for a better and cleaner environment. However, we can tell you what we are actively doing to try and help the planet.  

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