COP 28

Day 12

A deal agreed at COP28 pledges a global transition away from fossil fuels for the first time since these annual discussions started over 30 years ago.

Oxford Martin Fellow Kaya Axelsson has been on the ground in Dubai for the duration of COP and has been posting an extensive analysis on the agreed text. She also had this to say before the deal was passed.

Day 11

Nations, including the UK, US and EU, react furiously to a long-anticipated draft text that doesn't include the phrase 'phase out' of fossil fuels.

Members of the Oxford Net Zero team Myles Allen and Cameron Hepburn - also Senior Fellows of the Oxford Martin School - discuss frankly what role fossil fuels could play in the transition to net zero at COP28.

Day 10

Pledges are 30% short of what is required to reach international climate targets, warns the International Energy Agency.

Draft text on the Global Goal on Adaptation was published to a mixed reception, with criticisms regarding its lack of ambition and measurability. Key concerns include the omission of a call to protect 30% of ecosystems, necessary for biodiversity health.

Meanwhile, Dr Radhika Khosla of our Future of Cooling programme spoke to The National on how sustainable cooling can help significantly cut carbon emissions.

Day 9

Delegates return after a rest day, and discussions are expected to focus on the future of fossil fuels as countries try to reach a final agreement.

Oxford Martin School researchers have also been busy, with the Future of Cooling programme's Nicole Miranda presenting on modelling how refrigerants warm up the planet (clip starts around 1:48:30)

Day 8

Attention turns to the role of education in tackling climate change.

Meanwhile, Visiting Fellow at the Oxford Martin Programme on Biodiversity and Society, Erle Ellis, has written this opinion piece on why 1.5 degrees may not be the thing to focus on if we want to protect our planet.

Day 7

A new report launched at COP28 warns that the planet is on the brink of five catastrophic climate tipping points.

Attention also turns to transport, urbanisation and the built environment, although there is also a focus on sustainable ways to prepare food.

On the subject of food, the Oxford Martin Programme on Food Sustainability Analytics' Director Joseph Poore recently gave an interview to the BBC on food sustainability. He told them:

'There has been substantial progress recognising that food is a major driver of global climate change alongside fossil fuels. Addressing what we eat and how we produce food is going to be critical to solving the climate change problem.'

Day 6

Sixty-three countries join a pledge to deeply cut cooling-related emissions in Dubai.

The Global Cooling Pledge marks the world's first collective focus on climate-warming emissions from cooling, which includes refrigeration for food and medicine and air conditioning.

The Global Cooling Watch report, of which the Oxford Martin School Programme on the Future of Cooling's Director Radhika Khosla is a lead author, is also launched.

Day 5

COP28 is somewhat overshadowed by revelations that its president Sultan Al Jaber has said a phase-out of fossil fuels would not allow sustainable development unless you want to take the world back into caves'.

Senior Oxford Martin Fellow and Professor of Geosystem Science Myles Allen has commented on why ‘Just Stop Oil’ is easy to shout, but it cannot just happen, it cannot happen soon, and, crucially, it cannot happen soon justly.

Other topics discussed were finance, trade, gender equality and accountability.

Day 4

COP holds its first-ever health day in the UAE, with a declaration backed by some 120 countries stressing the link between health and climate change and pledging to support efforts to curb healthcare sector pollution, which accounts for 5% of global emissions.

Meanwhile, director of several Oxford Martin programmes, Dame EJ Milner-Gulland, tells the University of Oxford's website that it makes no sense to talk in apocalyptic terms about the environment as it may make people think it's too late to take any meaningful action.

Day 3

The World Climate Action Summit concluded with several key commitments. In total, 117 governments pledged to triple the world's renewable energy capacity by 2030 and reduce fossil fuel use. However, another 50 fossil fuel firms signed ambiguous net zero and methane pledges.

Professor Sir Charles Godfray, Director, Oxford Martin School and Professor Myles Allen, Professor of Geosystem Science, University of Oxford, recently discussed the way forward for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from livestock. In their co-authored blog, they said:

'The critical challenge for the world is to reduce warming in the short to medium term before climate impacts get much worse and any tipping points are passed'.

Day 2

World leaders have gathered at COP28 to take part in the World Climate Action Summit, with governments signalling their commitment to transform climate-related decisions into concrete actions to tackle climate change.

A total of 134 world leaders have signed the 'UAE Declaration for COP28 on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems and Climate Action', an agreement that aims to address the responsibility that food and agriculture have in tackling climate change.

Day 1

A loss and damage fund to help the poorest and most vulnerable countries affected by climate change was agreed on the opening day of COP28. Several countries have pledged money to the fund, worth a reported $429 million.

Dr Radhika Khosla, Director of the Oxford Martin Programme on the Future of Cooling, said:

'This is a critical step towards taking global responsibility for the irreversible impact of human induced climate change on low- and middle-income countries, whose development priorities are also the most affected by increasing climate impacts.

One key impact on such nations is rising intensity, duration and frequency of heat-related stress, which claims lives and disrupts productivity, and addressing such climate impacts through the fund will support communities impacted to build resilience.'

Learn how the Loss and Damage fund can help prevent biodiversity loss.