COP28: A timeline of the United Nations’ pledge to tackle climate change

It was 27 years ago that the first-ever Conference of the Parties (COP1) was held in Berlin, where the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was born. The annual COP talks have paved the way for significant contributions to environmental protection over the years.

COP3, held in Kyoto in 1997, saw the historical milestone of the Kyoto Protocol, the world’s first greenhouse gas emissions reduction treaty. The commitment to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases in industrialized countries laid the foundation of the carbon market.

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In 2001, governments reached a broad political agreement on the operational rulebook for the 1997 Kyoto Protocol at the second part of the sixth COP meeting in Bonn. This breakthrough paved the way for the Marrakesh Accords, resulting from COP7, which set the stage for ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. The Marrakesh Accords formalized the agreement on operational rules for International Emissions Trading, the Clean Development Mechanism, Joint Implementation, compliance regime, and accounting procedures.

The Kyoto Protocol came into force in February 2005 when the Russian Federation submitted its instrument of ratification. COP11, held in Montreal in December 2005, was the first time it was held in conjunction with the first Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties (CMP1).

In 2007, the Bali Roadmap was set out at COP13, which laid out a timetable for negotiations for a new international agreement to replace the Kyoto Protocol and include all countries, not only the developed ones. The plan laid out five main categories: shared vision, mitigation, adaptation, technology, and financing.

COP15, held in Copenhagen in 2009, saw the objective of keeping global warming below 2 ºC validated, with developing countries committing to financing developing countries in the long term. COP17, held in South Africa’s Durban, saw all countries agree to start reducing emissions, including the US and emerging countries (Brazil, China, India, and South Africa). It was decided to negotiate a global agreement that would come into force in 2020.

At COP18 in Doha in 2012, parties agreed to extend the Kyoto Protocol until 2020, and at COP20 in Lima in 2014, all countries agreed to develop and share their commitment to reducing emissions of greenhouse gases for the first time.

The most significant milestone that cemented COP’s contribution to the planet was the universal adoption of the Paris Agreement at COP21 in Paris in 2015. The 196 countries pledged to keep global warming below 2 ºC above pre-industrial levels and continue efforts to limit it to 1.5 ºC. Countries pledged to reach global peaking of greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible to achieve a climate-neutral world by mid-century.

The Paris Agreement was the first binding agreement that brought all nations into a common cause to undertake ambitious efforts to combat climate change and adapt to its effects. The agreement came into force just days before the COP22 Summit in Marrakesh in 2016 after being ratified by most nations.

Following summits saw progress made to detail how the Paris Agreement would work in practice, and significant reports analyzed the impacts of a 1.5°C global temperature increase, focusing debate on the need for greater urgency in reducing polluting emissions.

COP26 saw more than 25 countries commit to shutting off new international finance for fossil fuel projects by the end of 2022. This could shift more than US$24 billion a year of public funds out of fossil fuels and into clean energy.

COP27, which took place in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in 2022, saw a number of of agreements, crucially with a historic deal on their most cherished climate goal: a global fund for “loss and damage”, providing financial assistance to poor nations stricken by climate disaster.

All eyes are now on COP28, to be held in the UAE in November 2023, to see tangible solutions to one of the world’s most pressing issues of our time.

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