COP26 Daily Review: Thursday 4th November
Another day comes to and end at COP26. After yesterday's focus on Finance, today's focus was on Energy - a huge aspect of the climate battle. It was another busy day for CHEC delegates meeting individuals from different organisations and attending different events. Read on to find the latest video and photo updates from the CHEC team as well as, the latest headlines from COP26 today!
Looking for what's on tomorrow? Check out our COP26 Daily Preview: Friday 5th November.
CHEC at COP26: Continued Progress and a Goodbye
It's been a whirlwind week for CHEC at COP26 so far. You'll know from our daily videos of what we've been up to and we're showing no signs of slowing down.
The CHEC team has been busy again today. Some delegates attended a fascinating event entitled "Climate-Neutral Housing - Decarbonizing the Housing Stock in an Inclusive and Affordable Way". While others commented on how superb the "Ecocide Law & Financing the Future" event hosted by Stop Ecocide International was. Delegates also learnt about the:
- UK's work on fuel cell technology
- Germany's food and energy security in the Sahel
- Nordic sustainable hydropower
Delegates met different organisations such as AlphaCor who explained the exciting technologies they've been working on and spoke with the Executive Director of Agents of Change Foundation, Mutetelenu Kalama. We also have an interview with Nawa Joe Silishebo from the Young Emerging Farmers Initiative in Zambia. This is all covered in the video below as well as a talk from CHEC delegate, Nicholas Watts, who speaks about the Living Lands Project.
There was some sadness today though as CHEC Board Member and Trustee, Trevor Peel, spent his last day in Glasgow before heading back home. Trevor has achieved a lot at COP26 having attended the launch of the Business Council for Sustainable Development Manifesto for Climate Recovery and the President's Plenary on Climate Finance. We thank Trevor for his contribution to CHEC's efforts at COP26 and wish him a save journey home!
Is This the End for Coal?
There were a number of announcements today that suggest the end of coal is in sight. Firstly, more than 40 countries have signed up to shift away from the use of coal. This includes 5 of the world's leading coal power generating countries:
- South Korea (5th)
- Indonesia (7th)
- Vietnam (9th)
- Poland (13th)
- Ukraine (19th)
However, some of the biggest users of coal power, including the US and China, did not sign the agreement.
In a separate commitment, 25 countries and public finance organisation agreed to end international public support for the unabated fossil fuel energy sector by the end of 2022. This agreement includes Italy, Canada, the United States and Denmark, while Ethiopia, Fiji and the Marshall Islands all offered their support.
Also today, 20 countries agreed to stop building new coal plants. Vietnam, Morocco and Poland were just a few of the countries who signed up to this.
In other coal-related news, the Powering Past Coal Alliance added new members with Chili, Singapore and another 26 countries signing up.
Carbon Emissions Rebound After Covid-19
In other news today, a report by the Global Carbon Project has shown that carbon emissions have risen much quicker than expected since the dip experienced throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. It is expected that carbon dioxide emissions will rise by 4.9% this year.
This shows not only how important negotiations at COP26 are but also how urgently changes need to be implemented to make meaningful change.
COP26 Commitments Could Limit Warming to 1.8 Degrees
Yesterday, we reported that the pledges made at COP26 could limit global warming to under 2 degrees for the first time. The University of Melbourne predicted that the number would be 1.9 degrees.
However, writing on Twitter, Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, stated that the pledges, if achieved, would bring warming down to 1.8 degrees.
The key caveat to this, however, is that implementation of the pledges needs to be succesful.
Find out what's on tomorrow at COP26 in our COP26 Daily Preview: Friday 5th November.
