Reuters reports today that the meeting opened with a bang in the form of the adoption of a wonderful new fund to help poor nations deal with climate change.  This puts a good face on a situation that’s anything but wonderful since the UNEP (United Nations Environment Program) called its November 20, 2023 report a “broken record”.  It states that “temperatures hit new highs, yet world fails to cut emissions [again].”  It is no surprise that this report also notes that “none of the G20 countries are reducing emissions at a pace consistent with their net-zero targets.”

We’ll see how this country-by-country progress report that lays out what each nation must commit to at COP28 to keep the global warming at or below 1.5 degrees Centigrade above pre-industrial levels, will fare at a confab hosted by Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber,  boss of one of the world's largest oil companies, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).

Ed Maurer