As world leaders gathered in Turkey for the UN climate talks, Fiona Harvey was right to ask, “What’s the point?” (What’s the point? Ten years after the Paris treaty, are climate talks getting anywhere?, 7 November). She pointed to how over 10 years ago in Paris, countries came together for the 21st conference and signed an agreement that aimed to limit global heating to 1.5C above preindustrial levels. For the past two years, temperatures “have exceeded that threshold”.
I was at last year’s climate summit in Brazil, where it was obvious that the Cop process itself is a big part of the problem. The agreed text did not include “fossil fuels”, not to mention any reference to transition away from them. This is largely the result of how negotiations are conducted, as they rely on unanimous consent by all participating countries.
