What is COP26?
COP is short for the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change, which is an event that takes place annually, though it was postponed last year because of the pandemic. World leaders do attend, but a lot of the discussions take place among ministers and other high-level officials working on climate issues. The 26 signifies that this is the group's 26th meeting.
What are the goals?
Alok Sharma -- a British Member of Parliament and the President of COP26 -- has said he wants this year's conference to reach agreement on a number of key targets, including:
- Keeping the goal of "1.5 alive," a target that some fossil fuel-producing countries have resisted, at least in terms of strengthening language around it in any agreement.
- Putting an end date on the use of "unabated" coal, which leaves open the possibility to keep using some coal, as long as the majority of greenhouse gas emissions from the fossil fuel are captured, preventing them to enter the atmosphere. Some scientists and activists groups have said all coal should be consigned to history.
- Providing $100 billion of annual climate financing, which wealthy nations agreed to, to help developing countries reduce fossil fuel emissions and adapt to the impacts of the crisis.
- Making all new car sales zero emissions within 14-19 years.
- Ending deforestation by the end of the decade, as forests play a crucial role in removing carbon from the atmosphere.
- Reducing emissions from methane, a potent gas with more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide.
What is 'net zero' and why is everyone talking about it?
A lot of countries have committed to reaching "net zero" by midcentury. Net zero is when the amount of greenhouse gas emitted is no greater than the amount removed from the atmosphere
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