by Charlotte
As COP26 draws to a close it cannot be denied that, despite criticisms of fossil fuel lobbying at the conference and Greta Thunberg’s judging of COP26 as a failure, the atmosphere surrounding this climate conference was starkly different from past sessions. Although the urgency of climate action was evident at COP25 in 2019, the conference in Madrid was characterised by a lack of willingness and ended with weak compromises. In contrast, this year has been regarded as ‘make or break’ with climate reports, protests, and civil society organizations having made very clear that our planet cannot bear another year of indifference towards the rapid change of the world’s climate. 
Several states have agreed on tackling issues regarding deforestation, methane, coal, and the financing of clean technology. World leaders made their first timid steps towards an international agreement on climate change, as the first draft of COP26 agreement emerged, urging countries to revisit their plans by the end of 2022 and to phase out coal and fossil fuel subsidies. UK prime minister Boris Johnson, spoke to the 196 country representatives and emphasized that it would be an ‘absolute disaster for the planet’ if states failed to reach an ambitious agreement at COP26. As of today, a new draft agreement at the COP26 summit has been released. Like the previous draft, it calls upon states to reveal their plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions faster, however, it softens commitments to reduce use of coal and other fossil fuels.
A shift in the right direction just before the summit’s end was evidenced by the unexpected joint statement between the world’s two biggest CO2 emitters, the US and China, that was announced yesterday. Therein, these nations pledged to boost climate co-operation over the next decade, agreeing on a range of issues, including methane emissions, the transitions to clean energy, and de-carbonisation. That said, China did not commit to the Global Methane Pledge, nor to any other major international agreements; China climate envoy Xie Zhenhua stated that China had its own national plans for methane.
Geneva International Centre of Justice (GICJ) has been following events at the conference and will shortly release a report covering the background, development, and prospects of COP26 and effective climate action generally. Regardless of the outcomes of previous summits and the non-binding effect of the agreements they bring about, GICJ supports forums such as COP26 as they unite delegates from all UN member states, strengthen inter-state cooperation, and raise awareness of the disastrous implications of human-induced climate change. The end of the climate conference must mark the beginning of real climate action. GICJ holds the opinion that now is the time to ensure climate action since not only the earth’s environment depends on it, but also the guarantee of human rights across the world. It is undisputed that climate change has a direct impact on human rights, such as the rights to life, self-determination, development, food, health, water, and sanitation and housing. Therefore, it is the responsibility of states, civil society, monitoring bodies, and the international community as a whole to ensure that states keep their word and to oversee whether agreements and pledges are implemented.
