Late Saturday night, the Glasgow COP26 was finally completed. It wasn’t without its trials and tribulations. In the eleventh hour, scientists issued a dire warning and video calling for mobilization and bold climate action.
Despite everyone being disappointed that their “red lines” had not been met, they all were pleased with the collaborative work achieved after long hours. The Glasgow Climate Pact was approved.
This is the first global roadmap to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees. In Paris, they had struggled to bring it down to 2 degrees. In Poland, there was great reluctance to go below 2 degrees. In Glasgow, however, demonstrators and scientists made their voices heard. Nobody spoke to anything greater than 1.5 degrees.
The Glasgow Climate Pact is the first COP to follow up on plans with action and to commence implementations. If all commitments are met, we may see a rise of 1.8 degrees. If there are spin-off benefits, limiting it to 1.5 degrees is possible.
One of the biggest disappointments from COP26 is that financing for damages and loss, and climate-resilience, is woefully inadequate for smaller nations. Pacific Islanders have changed the dialogue declaring: “We are not victims, we are warriors!”
