World watching as COP26 climate summit enters fraught final hours
- COP26, the UN climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, wraps up on Friday
- Deal between nations critical to avert disastrous effects of climate change
“The world is watching us”, COP26 President Alok Sharma told delegates charged with keeping the Paris Agreement temperature goals alive even as climate-driven disasters hit countries the world over.
The summit began with a bang as world leaders descended on Glasgow armed with a string of headline announcements, from a commitment to slash methane emissions to a plan to save the rainforests.
But progress has stalled in the underlying technical and now minister-level negotiations.
With one day left of scheduled talks, countries are hardly any closer to agreement over whether national emissions cutting plans must be ramped up in the short term, how climate action is reported, and how vulnerable nations are supported.
“The truth is that the atmosphere doesn’t care about commitments,” said Ugandan youth activist Vanessa Nakate.