It’s zero hour for the 13-day climate talks in Dubai starting Nov. 30, the 28th such gathering of world leaders under the auspices of the United Nations known as Conference of the Parties or COP.
In this high-level summit of an expected 70,000 delegates, where the Philippines is ready to present its experience, countries will aim to resolve a new agreement as accelerating climate change threatens the world with costly results.
COP, which also exist for other UN conventions and treaties on issues including desertification and biodiversity, refers to the 198 parties including the European Union that signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, originally adopted in Brazil in 1992.
COP has been held every year in different cities since 1995, with the exception of COP26 in Glasgow, which was delayed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Emirati presidency of the COP 28 has stated it wishes to focus on solidarity between the countries of the North and the South, the energy transition, and will ensure the world responds to the Global Stocktake with a clear action plan.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is expected to attend the summit, according to the Climate Change Commission, where the typhoon-prone country of 114 million is ready to deliver its message.
Earlier in June, the President said he was keen to attend the conference, adding climate change is “a primordial issue.”
In a press briefing, CCC Vice Chairman and Executive Director Robert Borje underlined the importance of conveying the experiences and efforts of developing countries like the Philippines.
He highlighted the message from the Philippines will revolve around the impact of climate change on lives, livelihoods, and the shared future of vulnerable nations and stressed the need for responsible action from the international community to address this life-and-death issue.
It is indeed significant to formulate solutions at the community and personal level by deepening understanding of its impacts as well as identifying possible measures to address it.
As host, the UAE is focused on providing practical and positive solutions that drive progress for climate and the economy, as well as relief and support to vulnerable communities.
Borje told the media: “The messages the Philippines wants to convey will really center on what developing countries, like the Philippines, continue to experience, what we are doing to make sure we are responsible members of the international community.”
The Philippines will also inform the international community what it needs to continue doing “because for countries, like the Philippines and other vulnerable nations, it is a question of lives, livelihood and our shared future.”
We hope the Dubai participants will not just hear or listen to the problems.
More importantly, we hope they will try to understand not just the paradox of climate change but its impact and what the world can do to address it.