COP29 climate conference opens in Baku with Kurdistan Region's high-level participation

Nov. 12, 2024

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - The global climate conference COP29 kicked off Tuesday in Azerbaijan's capital Baku, with Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani participating in the proceedings.

Countries are expected to seek a new annual climate finance goal to replace the $100 billion pledge set in 2009 that expires at the end of the year - which many say is far below what's needed to deal with accelerating air and sea temperature rises.

After a year marked by record global temperatures and severe weather conditions, the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Simon Stiell, called for setting an ambitious new climate finance target, emphasizing that this would benefit all countries, including the wealthiest and most powerful.

This came during his speech to negotiators at the 29th UN Conference of Parties (COP29) which opened Monday in the Azerbaijani capital Baku.

Stiell added that rampant climate change affects everyone in the world in one way or another, adding "Let's dispel any notion that climate finance is charity."

Stiell emphasized that the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change process "is the only place where we can address the pervasive climate crisis and hold each other reliably accountable for working on it. We know this process works because without it, humanity would be heading toward five degrees of global warming."

Stiell presented stark examples confirming the necessity of reaching a new climate finance deal, stressing that all countries would pay a heavy price if at least two-thirds of the world's nations cannot afford to rapidly reduce their emissions, and that the global economy could completely collapse if countries cannot strengthen their supply chains.

Thousands from around the world are gathering at the UN Climate Change Conference COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan's capital, which officially took over the presidency Monday from the UAE that hosted the previous summit, as participating countries prepare for difficult talks on finance and carbon credit trading.

The Conference of Parties (COP) has been the world's premier climate change conference since 1995.

The Kurdistan Region has been increasingly active in climate discussions, particularly regarding water security and sustainable development.

Azerbaijan, this year's host, is hosting the conference for the first time, marking a significant shift of climate diplomacy to the Caucasus region.

The conference comes at a crucial time when the Middle East faces severe climate challenges, including water scarcity and rising temperatures, making regional participation particularly significant.

Background

However, since each summit adopts different promises, plans and documents annually, following the basics of discussions can be difficult, and some common terminology accompanying conference discussions may need simplification. Here's what you need to know about the conference's importance and key climate terms:

Why is COP29 held annually?

Since climate change affects all countries, regardless of whether they contribute to the problem, it requires global solutions capable of dealing with diverse needs across different countries.

When the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change was signed in 1992, establishing global negotiations, parties made concerted efforts to distinguish between wealthy countries causing most of the global warming problem and poorer countries suffering disproportionately from it.

In other words, talks center on the idea that countries that benefited more from industrialization should bear greater responsibility for dealing with the resulting global warming problem.

Addressing this imbalance has become more difficult as developing economies grow and wealthy countries manipulate figures for other costs, including war-imposed costs.

The conference provides a place for countries to discuss solutions including energy policies, financing plans and funding needs.

World leaders attend almost every conference, giving an important signal that their countries are committed to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change goals. Leaders' attendance also helps hold each country accountable to other countries for previous promises.

But the annual conference represents only the main event in an ongoing process; country representatives meet throughout the year to strengthen new climate action proposals before the next conference, which can be agreed upon by consensus among all countries.

Is the process successful?

While each conference aims to enhance global climate action compared to the previous year's conference, the event also gives countries an opportunity to show their citizens the problem is being addressed.

Importantly, these efforts include countries calculating and declaring their emissions and contributing hundreds of billions of dollars in climate-related aid to developing nations.

Through the requirement for consensus decision-making, the process also ensures strong global support for agreed actions, improving chances these measures will be implemented.

However, progress moves far too slowly to curb temperature rises; since COP conferences began in 1995, emissions and temperatures continue rising, meaning the world is heading toward severe climate change.

UNFCCC advocates say there's no alternative to negotiating major societal and economic changes to try limiting global warming.

What results are expected from COP29?

This year's summit hopes to reach several important agreements: a new annual climate finance target, an agreement to operate multilateral carbon credit markets, and pledging more financial aid to countries already affected by costly climate disasters.

Moreover, negotiators are scheduled to continue working on technical agreements building on achievements from previous summits.

Outside the conference's formal framework, groups of countries can launch their own initiatives or pledge funding for specific projects. Companies are likely to reveal climate action-related business deals, while financiers try raising money for climate change mitigation investments.

What is Azerbaijan's role in COP29?

Azerbaijan chairs this year's twenty-ninth conference session, after the conference's rotating presidency moved to Central and Eastern Europe.

Next year, Brazil will host the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) from Latin America.

As summit host, it works throughout the year guiding pre-summit negotiations and pressuring other governments to take ambitious action, giving the presidency an important role in setting summit priorities.

What else happens at COP?

Beyond inter-state negotiations, the summit provides everyone opportunity to try drawing attention to an issue or seek funding.

Hundreds of side events provide dialogue opportunities between activists, scientists, climate change advocacy groups, and top banking sector officials.

The conference also hosts panel discussions with public attendance covering topics from ocean acidification to designing carbon emission offset projects.

Discussions led by state delegations, organizations and non-profits will take place in exhibition halls called the "Green Zone."

While some summits saw major organized protests, like thousands gathering outside COP26 in Glasgow in 2021, the last two conferences in Egypt and UAE allowed protests only in designated areas.

Azerbaijan is likely to see little civil activity outside the conference venue amid tight security measures.

Here's a guide to some terms that will be used at the conference:

UN Framework Convention

Refers to the 1992 agreement binding about 200 countries to combat global warming, and to the secretariat established to implement the convention.

COP

Refers to the Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change held annually for states that signed the UNFCCC since the convention took effect in 1994.

New Collective Quantified Goal

This relatively new term will be central to COP29. It refers to climate finance - a targeted annual financial pledge for climate-related efforts in developing countries.

Nationally Determined Contributions

Nationally Determined Contributions are each country's pledges to reduce emissions and adapt to climate change. Countries must update and expand their NDCs every five years.

The next round of NDCs is due in February, though some countries plan to present new pledges in Baku.

Global Warming

Refers to the gradual rise in Earth's atmospheric temperature.

Climate Change

Though "climate change" is often used synonymously with "global warming," it means something different. "Climate change" expresses global warming and its consequences like extreme weather.

Greenhouse Gases

These gases can trap solar heat in the atmosphere, causing global warming.

The strongest are methane and carbon dioxide, also known as "carbon emissions" because each contains carbon. The world's excess carbon emissions mostly come from burning fossil fuels and other industrial activities.

Paris Climate Agreement

The Paris Climate Agreement was reached in 2015 through COP21 in Paris, with countries agreeing to try limiting atmospheric temperature rise to "well below" two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial average temperatures, targeting keeping the increase at 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The Paris Agreement also calls for updating national emission reduction pledges (NDCs) every five years.

Net Zero Emissions

This term doesn't mean no emissions, but rather no additional emissions above what's recaptured through carbon dioxide reduction technologies, tree planting, or other means.

Reaching net zero emissions means greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere stop increasing.

Loss and Damage

Governments pledged $800 million last year to a new "loss and damage" fund to help poorer countries affected by climate change-induced disasters. The fund, now with a director and host country, will decide how to distribute funds and calls for more contributions at COP29.

Carbon Credits

Carbon credits allow any country or company to offset some of their carbon emissions by investing in emission reduction projects elsewhere.