Agreements of the COP26 in Glasgow: last chance for the planet?

It was given by Elvira Carles Brescolí, director of the Business and Climate Private Foundation, and organised by the Climate Change and Circular Economy and Energy and Chemical Industry commissions of Enginyers Industrials de Catalunya.

Knowing and understanding the agreements and commitments adopted at COP26 in Glasgow was the main objective of this session. Elvira Carles, an expert in climate change and accredited observer since 2010 by the United Nations, stated that although “it has gone very well, with all that has been agreed and signed it is not enough, COP26 means that we are moving forward slowly, but we are moving forward together”. Among other aspects, Elvira Carles highlighted that “it has finally been possible to close the Paris road book” and 500 financial services companies agreed to align with the Paris Agreement 130 trillion dollars, which represents 40% of the world’s assets. “The United States and China are committed to boosting climate cooperation over the next 10 years and to work as a team on methane and the transition to clean energy, decarbonisation and deforestation,” she said.

Elvira Carlos also stressed that 40 countries (including Poland, Vietnam and Chile) have agreed to abandon the use of coal and the rest will have to “accelerate the phasing out of coal (India) and fossil fuel subsidies (Saudi Arabia)”. Carlos also noted that 11 countries and some sub-national governments, such as California, have set a date to end oil and gas exploitation and extraction in their territories.

For more information, see Fulls d’Enginyeria>