Community Voices

I began this post on the eve of my first COP in the equal spirits of awe and skepticism. Every COP is an enchanting contradiction, I am told. Here, the UNFCCC plots a trajectory for course correction from the shadow of a combustion engine in the shape of a city. On arrival, a cab ferried me along an arterial highway fourteen lanes deep, threading through desert overlain with golf courses. I am not exempt from contradictions either, traveling by air alongside some eighty-four thousand others; by week’s end, the two planes that carried me from Boston and Dubai had emitted 4.7 tons of CO2.

Climate Policy LabJanuary 3, 20242023, author - Alexandra Cronin, COP28Comment

COP28 Reflections

As I embarked on my journey to COP28, anticipation and excitement filled my mind. I looked forward to immersing myself in the global investment landscape for climate innovations and the intricate world of science diplomacy. The prospect of participating in or observing climate negotiations on a global scale, where stakeholders from diverse backgrounds converged to address our planet's most pressing challenges, was quite thrilling.

Climate Policy LabJanuary 2, 20242023, COP28, Author- Shubhangi ThakurComment

Carbon Removal Pathways After COP28

Ahead of COP28, discussions around carbon removal emerged in the context of Article 6.4. Carbon removals refer to engineered or natural processes that remove CO2 from the atmosphere. With continued discussions at the 58th session of the SBSTA and pre-COP28 technical events, guidance on carbon removals under Article 6.4 was included in the recommendations. Despite the hopes adopting it at COP28, agreements on rules for carbon credits via removals were not made in Dubai.

Climate Policy LabDecember 21, 20232023, COP28, Author - Soyoung OhComment

Reflecting on International Climate Negotiations: COP28 and Beyond

As a student of climate policy with an interest in adaptation and finance, at the COP I was most curious to see how the conversation on financing adaptation is developing—within academic circles, multilateral development banks, and the private sector, whose need for increased participation in financing adaptation is widely recognized and demanded.

Climate Policy LabDecember 18, 20232023, Author - Aarushi Aggarwal, COP28Comment

Reflecting on COP28 and Looking Ahead

While the experience of COP was simultaneously exhilarating and exhausting, it was also impossible to ignore the elephant in the room. Expo City was an impeccable venue that ran like a machine. But the mechanisms that made for a nearly seamless user experience were well-oiled by the extraction of fossil fuels that are killing our planet and are in large part responsible for us needing to have a conference of the parties in the first place.

Climate Policy LabDecember 15, 20232023, COP28, Author - Alyssa ScheinerComment

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