COP29 at a glance: The end of COP as we know it?

After just five days of COP29, the disgruntled rumblings of climate leaders have come to a head: COP has been declared ‘no longer fit for purpose’.

For anyone following the news surrounding COP29 over the last few days, this should not come as a shock. With country delegations (those of that had shown up at all) jet-setting out of Baku in droves, the 29th Conference of Parties is perhaps less of a party and more of a small gathering. A gathering of which over 1,700 guests are fossil fuel lobbyists, it was reported today. The smattering of delegates from the Taliban to this year’s ‘COP of Peace’ adds the proverbial cherry on top.

Released on ‘Energy, Peace, Relief & Recovery’ day, an open letter signed by the likes of the former UN Secretary General and former UN Climate Chief stated that the COP structure, as it stands, ‘simply cannot deliver the change at exponential speed and scale, which is essential to ensure a safe climate landing for humanity’, and is thus in need of ‘urgent overhaul’.

With 2024 set to be the first year to breach the 1.5C warming limit set by the Paris Agreement, the ‘muted’ progress seen year on year between COPs is becoming excruciatingly painful for the populations hit the hardest by the devastating effects of climate change, placing the effectiveness of the entire conference structure under scrutiny.

Following the ‘landmark’ Global StockTake (GST) pledge at COP28 to ‘transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems’, the open letter demanded that countries that do not support such a transition must not be allowed to host future COPs. Support that goes beyond lip service that is… 

Azerbaijan is a petrostate through and through. With oil and gas accounting for 90% of their export sales and funding over half of their government’s budget, fossil fuels make up the backbone of their economy. One that they are reluctant to give up despite pledges to ‘lead by example’ when it comes to decarbonisation, their President deeming bringing fossil fuels to the market as their ‘god given’ right. Perhaps they will instead be following by example, a recent report unveiling that the COP28 host’s (the UAE) state owned oil and gas company ADNOC raked in a five-fold increase after criticisms of using COP28 as an opportunity for ‘under the table’ energy deals.

With mounting pressure on all sides to see sustained and effective action, what is clear is that reform is urgently needed. Both of our global energy systems, and of the COPs in general. Whether we see these changes in the near future is anyone’s guess.