At the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP 17), 20,000 negotiators and stakeholders from nearly 200 countries are meeting in Durban, South Africa. Although many countries are taking steps to curb GHG emissions as part of the global fight against climate change, there is little hope of a binding international agreement this year. After COP 15 in Copenhagen, there was considerable well warranted pessimism, and after COP16 in Cancun, heightened expectations appear to have vanished.

Review of Last Year’s Conference of the Parties

Although there were serious difficulties and disagreements at COP16, there were some minor achievements. The COP16 Conference adopted the Cancun Agreements which offered a glimmer of hope that we could move towards a low-emissions future and support enhanced action on climate change in the developing world.

The text on emission cuts called for “urgent action” to cap temperature rises at no more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, although it did not establish a clear mechanism for achieving the pledges made by the parties.

The parties also agreed to curb emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries. Perhaps the most significant achievement of COP16 concerns pledges of financial assistance for the developing world, especially those in Africa. The parties agreed to set up the Green Climate Fund, which was intended to raise and disburse $100bn a year by 2020 to protect developing countries against climate impacts and assist them with low-carbon development. Sadly, the fate of the fund is in jeopardy as the U.S. is now rejecting the current concept of the Green Climate Fund.

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