Berlin – The most absurd scene of the climate summit in Glasgow came about before it even began. It was in Rome at the G20 meeting. The heads of government stood in a row on Sunday morning with their backs to the famous Trevi Fountain and tossed coins into the water before leaving to meet again the next day for the climate summit in Glasgow. The tourist ritual is said to bring luck. But now it looked unhappy. As if only luck could help us with global warming.
That’s not the case. But how tough the efforts are to move faster on agreements to mitigate global warming becomes clearer every day at this expectation-laden summit. At halftime one can only draw a sobering balance sheet. Too little, too late – the buzzwords remain.
At the COP26 climate summit, the federal government is trying to make progress, especially in the areas of emissions reduction and international climate finance. In addition to more ambitious goals, recognizable progress in implementation and the long-term commitment to greenhouse gas neutrality by 2050 at the latest are important.
Implementation is the most important word in this context. Because the world is still a long way from being on the 1.5-degree course agreed in Paris. But there is still a lack of goals. The European Union, Germany, also the USA – many countries have set themselves new and more ambitious climate goals. A considerable dynamic developed here even before the summit. Now Russia and India have also made a start. However, there are also states that are further entrenched. This is particularly painful with China, because the country is responsible for 31 percent of all emissions worldwide.
Empty words are of no use to us. The climate situation and what to expect is dramatic. In the end, only actions count.
When it comes to the actual implementation, the world community is still in the process of regulating how states, municipalities or companies can offset emission reductions that have been achieved through international cooperation. Germany and the EU insist on a system without loopholes and double credits. The EU has already decided to achieve its new climate target without taking foreign reductions into account.
But these rules for climate protection are also missing in everyday life. For example, German companies simply asked for an internationally recognized definition of climate neutrality with regard to Glasgow. When is a cement plant climate neutral? When is a sneaker? What can be counted? The companies signaled that the economy was ready. But for them it is also a race in the market and they ask for a clear rulebook.
The real breakthroughs in Glasgow are also looking pretty meager. After all: there were some. At the beginning of the week, a large number of countries reached an agreement to reduce methane, and an equally large number signed another to phase out coal. When it comes to only allowing climate-friendly investments, not even in gas projects, there are only very few involved. Germany doesn’t either.
It is tough when it comes to the most important issue – supporting developing countries in the fight against climate change through public and private funds from industrialized countries. In Copenhagen in 2009 you had already promised to mobilize 100 billion dollars a year from 2020 onwards. Now it looks like that could be the case from 2023. It is unclear whether additional payments will be made.
In the next few days there will be talk of emission-free energy as the most affordable and most reliable option for all countries. It’s about zero-emission vehicles and almost zero-emission steel, as well as the availability of hydrogen. Maybe something else will come.
Everywhere, however, you will have to look carefully. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is sure to sell this summit as a success. The participants also want to see their efforts in a positive light. The greatest danger, therefore, is perhaps not that the negotiations fail. Promises and declarations of intent sound good, of course, but they may just be empty words and then they will be of no use to us.
The climate situation and what to expect is dramatic. In the end, only actions count. Point by point.
.