Was COP28 a huge success? | Podcast

This year’s COP went to overtime, as countries argued over the wording of the concluding statement. They had to carry on the negotiations all through the night to do it, but finally they emerged with what was described as a “historic” agreement. For the first time, the need to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels has been put on the record in a concluding statement from a COP.

In our final show on COP28, the Energy Gang look back on the last two weeks of negotiations and debates, and as the dust starts to clear, they assess what it all means. Ed Crooks was present at the talks in Dubai, as were regular guests Dr Melissa Lott of Columbia University and Amy Harder of Cipher, and together they tackle one key question: can we call the conference a success? Some people have been hailing it as a triumph, others say it’s a disaster. Does the truth perhaps lie somewhere in the middle? Or is it not that simple?

The Global Stocktake of climate action, agreed at COP28, calls for a “just, orderly and equitable” transition, “accelerating action in this critical decade, so as to achieve net zero by 2050”. Amy and Melissa explain what that means, and how it could change the world.

Find all of our coverage of COP28 at http://www.woodmac.com/podcasts/the-energy-gang