{"id":45665,"date":"2021-10-31T12:58:30","date_gmt":"2021-10-31T19:58:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=45665"},"modified":"2021-10-31T12:58:30","modified_gmt":"2021-10-31T19:58:30","slug":"everyday-erinyes-290","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2021\/10\/31\/everyday-erinyes-290\/","title":{"rendered":"Everyday Erinyes #290"},"content":{"rendered":"

Experts in autocracies have pointed out that it is, unfortunately, easy to slip into normalizing the tyrant, hence it is important to hang on to outrage. These incidents which seem to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with them will, I hope, help with that. As a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto<\/span><\/strong>, Megaera<\/strong><\/span>, and Tisiphone<\/span><\/strong>. These roughly translate as “unceasing,” “grudging,” and “vengeful destruction.”<\/p>\n

Today, COP26 (“Conference of the Parties” number 26) begins in Glasgow, Scotland. I am guessing that people who read this blog know a lot more about climate science than the average bear – “average bears” like the Senator who brought a snowball to the Senate floor to “prove” climate change was a hoax, for instance.) But that doesn’t necessarily mean we know every detail of what is and isn’t being done in every nation, nor how those efforts are and are not succeeding. Well, we are about to find out.
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4 key issues to watch as world leaders prepare for the Glasgow climate\u00a0summit<\/h1>\n
A mural near the site of COP26, the 26th Conference of Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change.
\nJeff J Mitchell\/Getty Images<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rachel Kyte<\/a>, Tufts University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Glasgow sits proudly on the banks of the river Clyde, once the heart of Scotland\u2019s industrial glory and now a launchpad for its green energy transition. It\u2019s a fitting host for the United Nations\u2019 climate conference, COP26<\/a>, where world leaders will be discussing how their countries will reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that are driving climate change.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been involved in climate negotiations<\/a> for several years as a former senior U.N. official and will be in Glasgow for the talks starting Oct. 31, 2021. As negotiations get underway, here\u2019s what to watch for.<\/p>\n

Ambition<\/h2>\n

At the Paris climate conference<\/a> in 2015, countries agreed to work to keep global warming well below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit), aiming for 1.5 C (2.7 F). If COP21 in Paris was the agreement on a destination, COP26 is the review of itineraries and course adjustments.<\/p>\n

The bad news is that countries aren\u2019t on track. They were required this year to submit new action plans \u2013 known as national determined contributions, or NDCs<\/a>. The U.N.\u2019s latest tally of all the revised plans submitted in advance of the Glasgow summit puts the world on a trajectory to warm 2.7 C<\/a> (4.86 F), well into dangerous levels of climate change, by the end of this century.<\/p>\n

\"Chart<\/a>
The U.N. Environment Programme\u2019s Emissions Gap Report, released Oct. 26, 2021, shows the national pledges so far fall well short of the Paris Agreement goals.<\/span>
\nUNEP<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

All eyes are on the G-20, a group of leading world economies that together account for almost 80% of global emissions<\/a>. Their annual summit<\/a> takes place in Rome on Oct. 30-31, immediately before COP26 begins.<\/p>\n

Some key G-20 countries have not submitted their updated plans yet, including India. Brazil, Mexico, Australia and Russia have filed plans that are not in line with the Paris Agreement.<\/p>\n

Details of how China will achieve its climate goals are now emerging<\/a>, and the world is poring over them to see how China will strengthen its 2030 emissions reduction target, which currently involves cutting emissions 65% per unit of gross domestic product, moving up the date when the country\u2019s emissions growth will peak, and setting industrial production targets for other greenhouse gases, such as methane.<\/p>\n