COP, IPCC and the Paris Agreement: A Quick Guide

COP31, the UN climate summit, begins November 9 in Antalya, Turkey, where nations will negotiate emissions cuts and climate crisis responses. Sweden's climate minister Romina Pourmokhtari will lead the delegation during the second week. The Paris Agreement, signed at COP21 in 2015, commits nearly all countries to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees, ideally 1.5 degrees, above pre-industrial levels. This is pursued through reduced greenhouse gas emissions and updated national climate plans every five years. The 1.5-degree target aims to avoid the most devastating climate effects, though the UN now calls it impossible to achieve. Current policies project around 2.8 degrees of warming, according to UNEP.