Search on Ifri.org

Frequent searches

Suggestions

COP28: Daunting Stakes and Pivotal Decisions on the Table

External Articles
|
Date de publication
|
Image de couverture de la publication
ispi_marchio_def_2_7_2017_blueing.png
Accroche

The UN climate conference in Dubai faces a moment of troubled geopolitical agenda lowering the focus on the climate emergency, but natural ecosystems will not wait for human decisions. A challenging test for the survival of diplomacy.

Image principale
COP28
COP28
Chinese Domestic Policy
Corps analyses

In a world of increased geopolitical fragmentation, wars, economic hardship, industrial and technological competition, for the international community focusing on climate change and the energy transition will not come as an easy task. Yet it is crucial and urgent for our collective survival. Against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and the 2022 energy crisis, the issue of security, in all its forms, has grown to be central in international fora such as the G20 and to dominate domestic agendas. Energy security, but also food security, water and medicine security and defense are at the forefront of efforts, casting a shadow over the urgency of the climate crisis in the immediate term. At the same time, the acceleration of destructive weather phenomena at a current level of warming of 1.15°C above pre-industrial level has made it into the daily news headlines and raises concerns of whole areas becoming un-insurable and un-inhabitable, of decreasing agricultural yields, of accelerated environmental degradation and loss of biodiversity and, overall, of an open Pandora box unleashing all threats to human security and well-being. The world must come to the realization that for every bit of degree of global warming, the consequences will be increasingly dire and potentially even irreversible where tipping points are crossed. The 28th edition of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 28) is opening with the hard task of taking steps ahead on climate change and make a synthesis out of opposing views.

The Global Stocktacke: turning science into action

First stop on the agenda of the COP28 is the Global Stocktake, put in place by the Paris Agreement in 2015, which must reflect the progress made on holding the global temperature increase to well below 2°C and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5°C.  This is a moment of collective acknowledgement that the world is nowhere near to being on track to meet these objectives. Globally, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions should be reduced by -43% by 2030 and -60% by 2035, whereas in 2022 GHG emissions were still on an upward trend of +1.4% compared to 2021. Hence, this Summit must turn scientific knowledge into bold decisions on mitigation efforts. Among the initiatives on the table that could positively contribute there is the tripling of the share of renewable energies and doubling the energy efficiency by 2030, a focus on decarbonizing the power system, supporting the decarbonization of energy intensive industries, and stopping the addition of new coal power plants to the international energy system.

[...]

 

> read the entire editorial on ISPI's website

Decoration

Available in:

Regions and themes

Thématiques analyses

Share

Image principale
Climate & Energy
Center for Energy & Climate
Accroche centre

Ifri's Energy and Climate Center carries out activities and research on the geopolitical and geoeconomic issues of energy transitions such as energy security, competitiveness, control of value chains, and acceptability. Specialized in the study of European energy/climate policies as well as energy markets in Europe and around the world, its work also focuses on the energy and climate strategies of major powers such as the United States, China or India. It offers recognized expertise, enriched by international collaborations and events, particularly in Paris and Brussels.

Image principale

The Strategic Dimension of Power System Flexibility: Opportunities in Europe

Date de publication
30 April 2025
Accroche

The European Union has embarked on an energy transition aimed primarily at replacing fossil fuels by electrifying demand. 

Cédric PHILIBERT Arthur de LASSUS
Image principale

Energy Developments in the United Kingdom

Date de publication
19 May 2025
Accroche

The United Kingdom (UK) has traditionally been an example for its neighbours and the world in developing ambitious, innovative and effective energy policies. 

Rémy CARBONNIER
Image principale

India’s Green Hydrogen Strategy in Action: Policy Actions, Market Insights, and Global Opportunities

Date de publication
24 April 2025
Accroche

India is poised to remain the world’s fastest-growing major economy, and this rapid growth is driving a sharp rise in energy demand. As the most populous country on the planet, India urgently needs to decarbonize its energy systems.

Akul RAIZADA
Image principale

Water in Mexico: an Emergency that Will Wait

Date de publication
22 April 2025
Accroche

Access to water is already and will become increasingly problematic for Mexican economic actors due to the progressive scarcity of the resource resulting from climate change, a geographical distribution that does not coincide with that of the population or economic activity, and management that has so far been far too lax. 

Page image credits
COP28
Chinese Domestic Policy

How can this study be cited?

Image de couverture de la publication
ispi_marchio_def_2_7_2017_blueing.png
COP28: Daunting Stakes and Pivotal Decisions on the Table, from Ifri by
Copy