COP26 Climate Summit is on now. Let us explain!
The COP26 summit is being held this month in Glasgow, so we thought we would share a summary of what COP26 is and some interesting facts about this historical summit.
What is COP26?
COP26 is the 2021 United Nations climate change conference. COP stands for ‘Conference of the Parties’. The number 26 represents the 26th summit being held. The aim of COP26 is for the 200 attending countries to set out their plans to cut emissions by 2030 in the hope of reducing the impacts of climate change and to keep global warming to 1.5C.
What is Climate Change?
Climate is the average weather in a place over many years. Climate change is a shift in those average conditions.
The world is warming because of emissions from fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas, caused by humans. When these fossil fuels burn, they release greenhouse gases – mostly carbon dioxide (CO2). These gases trap the Sun’s heat and cause the planet’s temperature to rise.
What next?
Massive efforts need to be made by governments, businesses and individuals to commit to making big changes that will ultimately stop global warming. Watch this space for details of the results of the summit.
For more information visit https://ukcop26.org/.
Images sourced by BBC UK.
