COP climate summits might yet have a useful future – here’s how

Check your subscription status, update your details and more. COP climate summits might yet have a useful future – here’s how No one is expecting COP31 to save the world from climate disaster, but it could provide a small taste of how international meetings can still deliver meaningful progress At a certain point, it becomes impossible to convey the urgency of the climate crisis in words. Calls to “intensify efforts” to cut emissions or countries “expressing alarm” at the pace of climate change start to ring hollow after years of rising emissions.

At a certain point, you have to ask, what difference will another carefully worded declaration really make? This is a live question: next week, countries will gather at the COP31 summit in Antalya, Turkey, to progress the global response to climate change. For the seasoned attendee, these gatherings follow a predictable rhythm: some pomp and ceremony at the start when the world leaders are in attendance, followed by a quiet first week of backroom talks, escalating tension and fights over finance in the second week, all rounded off with a late-night showdown as countries argue over the wording of a final agreement.

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