What really happens at the climate summit in Paris

In Paris over the next two weeks, diplomats from 190 countries will work on a new international agreement on climate change. Politicians are speculating that this is our last chance to “save the world” and how to limit global warming to 2°C.

Climate negotiations, by themselves, do not solve the problem of global warming. The summit itself is more ceremonial, the main negotiations between the countries are held in the framework of semi-closed consultations before and after the event. The actual goal is much more modest: to add structure and dynamics to efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and these efforts have already been implemented. A large-scale world-class event is needed just to draw attention to the problem of global warming.

There is a possibility that the summit will become not so much a climate, as a political one, in order to discuss the accumulated problems not related to the climate. For example, Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin were able to meet and discuss the situation in Syria and Ukraine.

Note that to date, the world powers have adopted only two main documents: the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol, in 1992. And there is no strong sense from these documents.

The Framework Convention was signed by the United States and Russia. But China, which accounts for the majority of emissions, refused to sign. The convention contained only recommendations to countries on how to reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere and develop “green” production.

The Kyoto Protocol is a kind of clarification of the framework convention. It spells out specific measures and quantitative indicators that will lead to a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

The problem is that since the signing of the Kyoto Protocol, the consumption of coal and oil has doubled. And this means that the harmful emissions into the atmosphere that affect the climate have also increased. In addition, the protocol refused to sign those countries that account for the bulk of emissions.

What to expect from the summit

Will share the money and technology

At the conference, Europeans will argue with the Americans about the implementation of commitments. Discuss how to arrange everything legally and how to help poor countries adapt new technologies.

All important issues will be resolved privately. The conference is more of a show of sorts.

For example, when European leaders insist on legally binding each country's promise to reduce emissions, they know that their demand is impractical for the United States. But they will still publicly discuss this issue.

At each climate conference, poor countries are reminded that they need help to adapt the economy to climate change.

Since rich countries are responsible for the vast majority of emissions, they agree to allocate funds, but they do not always keep their promises.

The 100 million dollars a year promised at the climate conference in Copenhagen to the poor countries have not yet been transferred (the case was in the 2009 year).

Despite this, poor countries continue to ask for more money to adapt to climate change. India, for example, says: we can't get rich like the USA, Europe or China, burning a lot of coal, so give us 160 million dollars a year.

What has already happened in two days of the summit

On Tuesday at the summit in Paris, the White House announced the promises of 73 US companies that joined efforts to combat climate change.

They say that they will reduce harmful emissions up to 50%, water consumption by 80% and switch to 100% consumption of clean energy.

Heads of several states spoke in support of efforts to protect and restore forests.

President Obama on Monday called on world leaders to “be on top at this crucial moment,” stating that the success of the UN climate summit in Paris will be measured by “the amount of suffering that can be prevented and the state of the planet that can be saved.”

The summit seeks to reach a binding agreement for all parties to prevent temperatures from rising more than two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. According to the UN World Meteorological Organization, the increase in average global temperature will be one degree Celsius, that is, half the limit that the UN proposes to introduce to prevent catastrophic consequences throughout the world, writes “Voice of America«.