COP26 postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
On April 1, 2020, the United Nations announced that the Conference of Parties (COP 26) that was to be held in Glasgow in November 2020 has been pushed to 2021. This is being done over the threat of COVID-19 virus and its impact on the world.
Highlights
The COP 26 which is considered as an important climate negotiation since Paris agreement has been delayed. The decision was taken after the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change agreed to delay the talks.
Impacts
Delaying the talks has induced fear of easing governments over the targets set by the Paris agreement. The 1.5 degree report of IPCC (Inter Governmental Panel on Climate Change) had warned that the world will breach the 1.5 degree Celsius limit set between 2030 and 2052. Currently the world is 1.2 degrees warmer than the pre industrial levels. The aim was to keep it under 1.5 degrees. This is because, at such temperature all the corals in the planet would bleach off and die eventually affecting the marine ecosystem to a great extent. This will slowly affect the global environment and survival on the earth.
Therefore, delaying the talks will lead to lose of track in checking the emissions of different countries. The UN should come up with alternatives such as video conferencing as that adopted by SAARC and G20.
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Month: Current Affairs - April, 2020