COP26 is the 2021 United Nations climate change conference, dedicated to bringing together world leaders and countries across the globe for the fight against climate change. This year, it took place in Glasgow and excitingly, our Principal Environmental Sustainability Officer, Dan Epstein, was invited to attend. Dan wrote a blog about his time there.
Dan says:
What an extraordinary time at COP26; I was part of discussions with three prime ministers, four UK ministers, and the heads of the World Resources Institute, United Nations Development Programme and International Union for the Conservation of Nature. I met businesses such as Google, MasterCard and Rolls Royce, leaders from UK Research and Innovation, the World Health Organisation and World Trade Organisation to mention a few, and more importantly, many people from the Amazon, Costa Rica, Greenland, the outback of Australia and more.
Businesses have learned the language of sustainable development so that terms like ‘regenerative farming’, ’nature-based solutions’ and ‘renewable zero carbon energy’ trip off the tongue as if nothing could be more normal. There were heightened calls for action, investment, engagement, and transparency.
The pledges and commitments have come fast and furious and more money and initiatives will be announced this week. There was a real acknowledgement that the world is on fire and a determination to take action, but the road to COP26 was the easy bit. COP26 has achieved a lot if measured in promises, which if realised, might deliver a 1.8 degree rise in temperature according to the International Energy Association – however this is the best-case scenario and assumes every pledge will be met. The reality is that growth in emissions are likely to result in a higher increase in global temperature, unless we continue to take action and accelerate the pace that we transition to a low carbon, biodiverse and resource efficient model of growth. Further, the focus is largely on technology and innovation, which are critical, but need to go hand in hand with behaviour change and new forms of governance and participation.
The road from Glasgow is where the uplands start. The passion I witnessed needs to be turned into delivering the billions in promises from government, and the trillions from business need to be managed with a huge degree of care, transparency, and fairness if they are to succeed. Radical collaboration using innovation to build bridges between financiers and communities, especially those people who care for land, is needed. There are many hazards to overcome but much to be hopeful about. If the will persists we can chart a way out, but it will need our integrity, emotional intelligence, partnerships, empowerment, and much more.
A tall order, but then we have never faced such a monumental and immediate challenge.