Also available in Icelandic: https://www.umhverfissinnar.is/post/uppl%C3%BDsingapakki-fyrir-cop27
Get up to date on everything there is to know about COP27 and keep up with what is happening at the conference using this information package from the Icelandic Youth Environmentalist Association!
This year’s UN Climate Conference (COP27) is right around the corner. Last year COP26 took place in Glasgow in Scotland but this year COP27 will take place in Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt.
These conferences are very important as they provide a platform for countries from all over the world to agree on climate action on a global scale and work together towards common goals. It is clear that the progress made until now is far from sufficient and it is vital that the ambitions be raised at COP27 to keep the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees alive.
Climate change can be a complex topic and it can be difficult to understand what exactly these climate conferences are really about, how they work and what is being decided there. Therefore, we have created this information package in the lead-up to COP27 to make it easier for you to look into what COP27 is really about, what to expect from it and enable you to keep up to date with what is happening during the conference.
This information package contains the newest reports on climate change, Iceland’s international climate pledges, news articles on what to expect from COP27, podcasts, videos, and more. The list we have compiled is by no means exhaustive but it should give a good insight into the main information relevant to COP27. If there is something we have not put on the list and you think should be on it, please let us know by sending us an email (loftslagsfulltrui@umhverfissinnar.is).
We hope this information package comes in handy and we look forward to sharing our experience and participation at COP27 on our social media in the coming weeks!
We particularly suggest these sources:
Reports
The newest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
The report summarizes the most up to date climate science to give a holistic view of where we stand on climate change globally
The newest report from the UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) about greenhouse gas emissions world-wide
This annual report gives a good indication of the gap between current projected emissions and the emission reductions we need to see to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees
Summary and analysis of the Nationally Determined Contributions that have been submitted under the Paris Agreement
This report gives an indication of where we are headed with regards to climate change (particularly in terms of emissions and warming we are likely to see, but also in terms of climate adaptation)
Here is a summary of the report from the UNFCCC
A new report on the state of climate action world-wide
The report was created through a collaboration between various institutions and organizations (World Resource Institute, Climate Action Tracker, and more)
Here you can find more climate related reports from the UN.
Reports particularly related to Iceland:
The official report submitted to the UNFCCC on Iceland’s greenhouse gas emissions between 1990 and 2020
Here you can find more info about what National Inventory Reports are and why they are important
Iceland’s international pledge under the Paris Agreement
Here you can find info on what Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are and see other countries’ contributions
Websites
The official website of COP27
The official website of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
On this website, you can find all the documents being discussed at COP27 (as well as documents discussed at previous meetings); the final results of the conference will also be available on this website (these documents are often quite technical and difficult to understand)
Here you can see news from the UNFCCC which explain in simpler terms what is being discussed and decided
This organization summarizes and analyzes the climate pledges and actions of various countries around the world and present this information in an accessible manner
Websites for Icelandic context:
Here you can find various information about climate related matters in Iceland, for example the National Climate Action Plan
On this website you can find various information about greenhouse gas emissions in Iceland
Here you can find the preliminary calculations from the Icelandic Environment Agency regarding Iceland's emissions in 2021
On this website created by Birna Sigrún Hallsdóttir, there is abundant information about climate change and topics related to the ocean (e.g. info on Iceland’s greenhouse gas emissions and climate targets/pledges, as well as a compilation of concepts and words relevant to climate change)
News articles
Summary from the UN on what to expect at COP27 and how you can follow what is happening during the conference
Article from The Nature Conservancy on what COP27 is, the importance of the conference and what to expect
Article from the BBC on COP27 and its importance
Article from The Guardian on COP27 and the possible impacts of the events that have taken place between COP26 and now
Podcasts
Weekly podcast about various climate related topics (one question is discussed each week and different points of view considered in an easily understandable manner)
It is likely that COP27 will be discussed in this podcast in the coming weeks
Weekly podcast where climate change is discussed, usually through a politics lens (this podcast is a bit more technical/complex than The Climate Question)
One of the hosts of this podcast is Christiana Figueres who was the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC in 2015 when the Paris Agreement was signed
It is likely that COP27 will be discussed in this podcast in the coming weeks
Videos
Archie Young, the lead negotiator of the UK delegation to COP27 briefly explains what negotiators like himself do at such conferences
Social media accounts to follow
During COP27, we will post regularly about our participation at the conference as well as the major developments in the negotiation process
Instagram:
Twitter:
Nigel Toppings (UN Climate Change High-Level Champion)
Vanessa Nakate (climate activist)
Laurence Tubiana (CEO European Climate Foundation)
Peter Calmus (NASA climate scientist and activist)
In-Session Documents (UNFCCC)
Additional materials
Thorough summary by the COP27 organizers in collaboration with young people about the history of climate related work at the UN, how these COP conferences work, and the main topics that will be discussed at COP27
Detailed summary from the UNFCCC on the work that has taken place between COP26 and COP27 and what to expect at COP27
Scenario note from the chair of the Subsidiary Body on Implementation in the lead-up to COP27 (where matters stand and what to expect on this topic at COP27)
Scenario note from the chair of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific and Technological Advice in the lead-up to COP27 (where matters stand and what to expect on this topic at COP27)
The official outcome of COP26 which was held in Glasgow in November 2021
In 2015, this agreement was signed in Paris at COP21
The agreement states that the countries who signed it should try to limit global warming to 2 degrees, preferably 1.5 degrees
Here you can find more information about the contents of the Paris Agreement and how it works
In 1992, this became the first convention related to climate change to be agreed upon through the UN
The work done on climate change at the UN continues to build upon this framework convention
This information package was compiled by Finnur Ricart Andrason, the climate representative of the Icelandic Youth Environmentalist Association. For any questions, please send an email to loftslagsfulltrui@umhverfissinnar.is.