Information about COP26 and the Council's own decarbonisation programme featuring at the event
What is COP?
For nearly three decades, beginning in 1995 in Berlin, Germany, the United Nations has brought together almost every ‘state’ (country) or ‘regional economy integration organisation’, such as the European Union (known as the Parties) on the planet for global climate summits known as COPs, which stand for 'Conference of the Parties.'
Climate change has progressed from a minor concern to a global concern during that time.
The COP assesses the effects of Parties' actions and the progress made toward the Convention's goal of tackling climate change. For further information, visit the COP26 website.
COP21: Paris agreement
In 2015, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of Parties 21 (UNFCCC COP21) was held in Paris. This COP's decisions and agreement are regarded as a historic moment in the transnational climate change process because it was the first time that a legally binding agreement brought all nations together in a common cause to combat climate change and adapt to its effects. The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It was adopted by 196 Parties on December 12, 2015, at COP 21 in Paris, and went into effect on November 4, 2016. Its goal is to limit global warming to less than 2°C., with an attempt to keep it below 1.5°C, compared to pre-industrial levels.
Importance of COP26 and the big responsibility on the host-UK
The COP 26 UN Climate Change Conference, hosted by the United Kingdom in collaboration with Italy, will take place from October 31st to November 12th, 2021, in Glasgow, Scotland.
The conference was originally scheduled for November 2020, but because of the global impact of COVID-19, the UNFCCC COP Bureau, in collaboration with the UK and its Italian partners, decided to reschedule the conference. The conference was rescheduled so that all parties could focus on the issues to be discussed at this critical conference and so that more time could be spent on preparations. More details are available here Road to Glasgow.
For twelve days of talks, world leaders will arrive in Scotland, along with tens of thousands of negotiators, government representatives, businesses, and people. Most experts believe COP26 has a unique urgency. The Paris commitments did not come close enough to limiting global warming to 1.5°C., and the window for doing so is closing.,
The Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk and COP26
Our 2021 Re:fit 2 scheme saw us receive a £3.8 million grant from the public sector decarbonisation scheme, for the decarbonisation of our buildings. 11 buildings are benefiting from this funding, with the installation of air source and ground source heat pumps, solar pv, improved installation and timeclock controls.
Our work on this has recently featured in the COP26 climate leader’s campaign and will feature at the COP26 event: