The start of this week marked the beginning of the COP26 climate summit, with world leaders and representatives from 190 nations meeting in Glasgow to discuss and commit to pledges which will ensure a safe and sustainable future to our planet.
Thus far, three main pledges have proposed actions against climate change and highlight the important news to come out among the constant discussions and discourse from world leaders and representatives. These three main pledges each propose to reduce the level of deforestation, emissions of methane and coal power.
Signed by one-hundred and ten nations, the first pledge aims to end deforestation by 2030, backed by £14 billion in public and private funds. Included in the signatories is Brazil, who’s as a nation own vast portions of the Amazon Rainforest and are a main power behind mass deforestation. In hope, the increase of trees and dense foliage would absorb and reduce levels of CO2 and accelerate aims towards a cleaner atmosphere.
On Tuesday, over one-hundred countries signed a pledge committing to cut emissions of methane, as reports state that the greenhouse gas was responsible for a third of climate warming. This pledge has aimed to reduce methane emissions 30% by 2030, as reducing methane is one of the most effective things to target that could create significant reduction to near term effects of global warming.
Finally, the pledge to reduce reliance on coal power was signed by twenty-three nations on Thursday, as a commitment to phase the non-renewable element and transition to more sustainable sources. Included within this pledge are five nations which rank within the twenty highest ranking coal using counties, most notably South Korea and Indonesia who rank fifth and seventh.
It will be interesting to see what comes from the second week of the climate summit as some leaders have started heading back to their respective countries.