WEBVTT - Will COP26 deliver under the weight of expectations? | EP 53 0:00:00.090 --> 0:00:05.430 The following is a C and a podcast. Welcome to 0:00:05.430 --> 0:00:11.400 the climate conversations, I'm Jamie who I'm talking about COP26, 0:00:11.400 --> 0:00:13.680 the annual meeting of the Conference of Parties to the 0:00:13.680 --> 0:00:18.270 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Negotiators have started converging 0:00:18.270 --> 0:00:21.150 in Glasgow and in coming days, leaders will follow as 0:00:21.150 --> 0:00:23.280 they seek to agree on all the key issues that 0:00:23.280 --> 0:00:26.850 have remained unresolved since the landmark climate conference six years 0:00:26.850 --> 0:00:30.780 ago in Paris, just as France hosted and led negotiations 0:00:30.780 --> 0:00:33.780 in 2015 is the United Kingdom's time. It's time to 0:00:33.780 --> 0:00:37.410 make this final push in the coming days. The context 0:00:37.470 --> 0:00:41.010 could not be clearer. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 0:00:41.010 --> 0:00:44.010 or IPCC, has in recent months laid out an even 0:00:44.010 --> 0:00:47.640 more stark terms the code Red for Humanity through its 0:00:47.640 --> 0:00:50.700 latest report, laying out the extent of the Earth's warming 0:00:50.700 --> 0:00:53.250 and the role that we have all no doubt played 0:00:54.120 --> 0:00:56.730 at the launch of the report. UN Secretary General Antonio 0:00:56.730 --> 0:00:59.520 Guterres said there was no more time for delay and 0:00:59.520 --> 0:01:02.640 no room for excuses not to take action. I count 0:01:02.730 --> 0:01:06.630 on government leaders and all stakeholders to ensure COP26 is 0:01:06.630 --> 0:01:09.959 a success, he said. So just what would success look like, 0:01:09.959 --> 0:01:12.630 what's been done or not done in the last years 0:01:12.630 --> 0:01:14.730 and what needs to be done in the coming days? 0:01:17.630 --> 0:01:20.450 With me to discuss this is about the lobbying force 0:01:20.450 --> 0:01:23.090 who works for the British government as head of Southeast 0:01:23.120 --> 0:01:27.500 Asia COP26 strategy based here in Singapore. Isobel, welcome. Thank you. 0:01:27.900 --> 0:01:28.819 Thank you for having me. 0:01:28.910 --> 0:01:31.310 I'm going to jump straight into it and refer to 0:01:31.310 --> 0:01:34.250 something that Mr Alok Sharma recently said. He's your boss, 0:01:34.250 --> 0:01:37.399 I presume, as president of COP26. And he has said 0:01:37.400 --> 0:01:39.440 over the last couple of days in my mind, he's 0:01:39.440 --> 0:01:43.790 appeared to either manage expectations by seeing that achieving a 0:01:43.790 --> 0:01:46.880 global climate deal in Glasgow might be harder than back 0:01:46.880 --> 0:01:49.700 in Paris. Or, you know, maybe he was just setting 0:01:49.700 --> 0:01:52.400 out the immensity of the task ahead in the coming weeks. 0:01:52.790 --> 0:01:54.920 But before we get into that lay out for us 0:01:54.920 --> 0:01:59.180 in broad strokes what the key deliverables for COP26 are 0:01:59.180 --> 0:02:01.250 going to be that will make up this global deal. 0:02:01.670 --> 0:02:05.090 The key thing we have to remember about Glasgow COP26 0:02:05.090 --> 0:02:07.640 is that we are not seeking to have a new deal. 0:02:08.000 --> 0:02:11.810 We actually are seeking to deliver on the Paris Agreement. 0:02:12.200 --> 0:02:16.790 Paris Agreement was a milestone, a landmark agreement. The position 0:02:16.790 --> 0:02:19.399 we are in now is to make sure that Glasgow 0:02:19.430 --> 0:02:23.540 delivers on what Paris promised. It's a difficult task because 0:02:23.840 --> 0:02:27.930 since the parties got together in Paris in 2015, can 0:02:27.950 --> 0:02:32.359 has gas emissions have continued to increase and the impacts 0:02:32.360 --> 0:02:36.500 of climate change have kept telling themselves already works. We 0:02:36.500 --> 0:02:39.799 have massive impacts of climate change at the party. Glasgow 0:02:39.800 --> 0:02:43.470 is a big cop running circles of five year cop. 0:02:43.820 --> 0:02:46.370 Every five year you have a big cop where the 0:02:46.370 --> 0:02:48.950 big agreement is made and then the years in between 0:02:48.950 --> 0:02:52.130 the more boats monitoring progress. This one comes five years 0:02:52.130 --> 0:02:54.830 after Paris, actually six years because we had one year 0:02:54.830 --> 0:02:57.540 of delay because of going to this one actually is 0:02:57.620 --> 0:03:01.430 looking at showing how the world's reinforces its commitment to 0:03:01.430 --> 0:03:05.929 the Paris Agreement and actually demonstrates that it can deliver 0:03:06.110 --> 0:03:10.639 on what Paris signed up. It's also the unresolved issues 0:03:11.240 --> 0:03:14.540 in the Paris Agreement to make it actually work effectively. 0:03:14.900 --> 0:03:18.260 There are things that the negotiators who have agreed to 0:03:18.260 --> 0:03:20.780 Paris agreements to nail down. So that's the first thing. 0:03:20.800 --> 0:03:24.470 It's basically Paris promised a lot and we are still 0:03:24.740 --> 0:03:27.769 committed to these promises and we want all the parties 0:03:27.770 --> 0:03:30.980 to still confirm their commitments to Paris. But Glasgow must 0:03:30.980 --> 0:03:35.120 deliver on what Paris promises. The second key objective for 0:03:35.120 --> 0:03:41.330 COP26 is about keeping this 1.5 degrees alive because since 0:03:41.330 --> 0:03:44.150 the Paris Agreement was signed, the world has not done enough. 0:03:44.540 --> 0:03:49.940 Emissions have continued to increase, and the IPCC has issued 0:03:49.940 --> 0:03:52.940 a report of its summer in August showing that the 0:03:52.940 --> 0:03:56.840 world is not on track to keep 1.5 degrees alive. Therefore, 0:03:56.840 --> 0:04:00.500 we must step up the actions before the window for 0:04:00.500 --> 0:04:04.370 action is closing because we actually must reduce the greenhouse 0:04:04.370 --> 0:04:09.070 gas emissions by half by 2030 and move globally to 0:04:09.070 --> 0:04:13.400 a net carbon emissions by 2050. And the trajectory now 0:04:13.430 --> 0:04:18.080 is still in a remote region, especially in Asia and 0:04:18.080 --> 0:04:21.560 Southeast Asia. We need to keep this 1.5 goal that 0:04:21.560 --> 0:04:24.890 was set at Paris the lies and show that countries 0:04:24.890 --> 0:04:27.830 come to the table with commitments to keep this alive, 0:04:28.070 --> 0:04:31.730 and we will do that through actions across different sectors 0:04:31.740 --> 0:04:35.270 that contribute the most for the reasons gas emissions, the 0:04:35.270 --> 0:04:39.140 power sector, deep forests and land use sectors. These are 0:04:39.140 --> 0:04:42.350 key target sectors where we must show that we are 0:04:42.360 --> 0:04:45.760 committed to reduce emissions. The last, so let's would say, 0:04:45.950 --> 0:04:48.890 is that because of COVID, it will not really feel 0:04:48.890 --> 0:04:52.820 like your normal cop health safety rules will be straight 0:04:52.820 --> 0:04:55.280 and stringent, and we have to do that to ensure 0:04:55.279 --> 0:04:58.190 that we can have a physical cop and safeguarded irrigation. 0:04:58.190 --> 0:05:00.979 So we really have to develop code that is transparent, 0:05:00.980 --> 0:05:04.130 inclusive and driven by the parties who need to be 0:05:04.130 --> 0:05:06.420 there to negotiate. So it's not an easy task, but 0:05:06.440 --> 0:05:08.779 I think we've set ourselves in a good position to 0:05:08.779 --> 0:05:09.260 get there. 0:05:09.770 --> 0:05:12.260 You've raised many, many issues and I hope to get 0:05:12.260 --> 0:05:14.330 into all of them, including the last thing that you 0:05:14.330 --> 0:05:18.530 mentioned about how the negotiations actually take place. But let 0:05:18.529 --> 0:05:21.560 me jump on a first question before that, and that 0:05:21.560 --> 0:05:24.830 relates to obviously the ambition and the targets that I 0:05:24.830 --> 0:05:28.070 have already been put up, which, as you allude to 0:05:28.070 --> 0:05:31.040 need to be improved on NDCs, is what they're called 0:05:31.040 --> 0:05:34.849 nationally determined contributions. They've all been submitted, but there have 0:05:34.850 --> 0:05:39.380 been continual calls for people to bring improved contributions to 0:05:39.380 --> 0:05:44.270 the table. Are you expecting anything between now and two 0:05:44.270 --> 0:05:47.599 to three weeks time in terms of more ambitious targets? 0:05:47.600 --> 0:05:50.810 We saw recently that Australia has now spoken about net 0:05:50.810 --> 0:05:54.560 zero emissions by 2050, but what else might you realistically 0:05:54.560 --> 0:05:55.070 expect 0:05:55.520 --> 0:05:58.760 under the Paris Agreement? All the parties have a legal 0:05:58.760 --> 0:06:03.170 obligation to submit their indices. This is basically each country 0:06:03.170 --> 0:06:07.520 setting for themselves their targets in terms of reducing their 0:06:07.520 --> 0:06:11.360 greenhouse gas emissions. Most of the countries have set these. 0:06:11.690 --> 0:06:14.810 In South East Asia, for instance, 10 countries have submitted 0:06:15.110 --> 0:06:18.260 their budgets in. Seemed to the unit to proceed and 0:06:18.279 --> 0:06:20.740 monitor them where we are at this stage is that 0:06:20.740 --> 0:06:23.200 if you look at some of the indices, he still 0:06:23.200 --> 0:06:26.800 doesn't keep us on a trajectory to 1.5 degrees, not 0:06:26.800 --> 0:06:29.680 even a two degree trajectory. So there's still more that 0:06:29.680 --> 0:06:33.160 needs to be done. And these only see look at 2030. 0:06:33.339 --> 0:06:35.979 By 2030, this is really the Typekit where we have 0:06:35.980 --> 0:06:39.580 to bend the curve, bend the curve of emissions. So 0:06:39.580 --> 0:06:44.920 shifting from globally increasing emissions to actually globally decreasing emissions 0:06:45.130 --> 0:06:49.170 and then the steep dawn curve to keep 1.5 degrees alive, 0:06:49.480 --> 0:06:53.500 we're expecting a number of key countries to come to 0:06:53.500 --> 0:06:57.849 Glasgow with increased ambition. So I won't be able to 0:06:58.029 --> 0:07:00.190 tell you which countries they funding because that will be 0:07:00.190 --> 0:07:04.780 for the announcement. Yes, but we can't really expecting some 0:07:04.779 --> 0:07:07.630 countries to step up. We've already seen countries that we 0:07:07.630 --> 0:07:10.000 were not expecting to step up when we took the 0:07:10.000 --> 0:07:12.430 presidency about a year and a half ago, and we've 0:07:12.430 --> 0:07:16.060 seen them come to the table, increase the ambition. So 0:07:16.060 --> 0:07:18.130 I think we see that there is a clear process 0:07:18.130 --> 0:07:21.640 of ambition raising that is happening. When you talk about conditions, 0:07:21.640 --> 0:07:23.620 we have to consider as the nation is set for 0:07:23.620 --> 0:07:26.800 2030 and these are the indices and then the big 0:07:26.800 --> 0:07:29.230 announcement that we looking at as well are these net 0:07:29.230 --> 0:07:32.140 zero announcements. And as you know, this net zero is 0:07:32.140 --> 0:07:35.020 about 2050, so we're looking at a bit longer term. 0:07:35.320 --> 0:07:37.420 But the IPCC told us is that we have to 0:07:37.420 --> 0:07:41.470 reach net zero globally by 2050. Some countries may do 0:07:41.470 --> 0:07:44.410 it later, but globally the bulk of the emissions have 0:07:44.410 --> 0:07:47.400 to reach net zero by 2050. And that's where we 0:07:47.410 --> 0:07:50.140 were expecting a number of countries who have not yet 0:07:50.140 --> 0:07:53.560 spoken on net zero to come to cope with announcements 0:07:53.560 --> 0:07:57.790 on when it would reach net zero. The countries that 0:07:57.790 --> 0:08:01.630 have committed to net zero account for about 75 percent 0:08:01.630 --> 0:08:04.330 of the global greenhouse gas emissions and around 80 percent 0:08:04.330 --> 0:08:07.090 of the global GDP. And when we took our presidency 0:08:07.180 --> 0:08:10.420 in December 2019, the coverage was less than 30 percent 0:08:10.420 --> 0:08:13.690 of the GDP. So we've already achieved massively over the 0:08:13.690 --> 0:08:16.360 last year and a half, and it is definitely a 0:08:16.360 --> 0:08:18.760 trajectory of increasing ambition. 0:08:19.150 --> 0:08:23.140 As you say, the job of a president is to 0:08:23.290 --> 0:08:26.200 help push things along as it relates to ambition and 0:08:26.200 --> 0:08:29.290 targets to push all the parties along as quickly as 0:08:29.290 --> 0:08:31.810 we can and as strong as you can. A lot 0:08:31.810 --> 0:08:34.720 of work has already been done in the last couple 0:08:34.720 --> 0:08:38.380 of years. But how much of it actually culminates now 0:08:38.380 --> 0:08:41.860 and is it realistic always to expect the president to 0:08:41.860 --> 0:08:45.069 be able to put the cats in this last couple 0:08:45.070 --> 0:08:48.699 of weeks towards at least a good outcome in terms 0:08:48.700 --> 0:08:52.750 of ambition and enhanced NDCs, whether we are looking at 0:08:52.750 --> 0:08:56.320 targets for 2030 or even further to 2050. 0:08:56.679 --> 0:08:59.920 That's the challenge of the presidency and to, as you said, 0:08:59.920 --> 0:09:05.349 herding cats. We have 196 countries here. This is basically 0:09:05.350 --> 0:09:08.319 all the countries in the world and there are some 0:09:08.590 --> 0:09:12.400 difficult cuts in that match. So the role is really 0:09:12.400 --> 0:09:16.630 to lead by example. So I think what the UK 0:09:16.720 --> 0:09:19.810 presidency has been very firm on is really leading by 0:09:19.809 --> 0:09:24.400 example announcing our net zero commitments, or NDC. Last week 0:09:24.400 --> 0:09:27.250 we published on a dual strategy so leading by example. 0:09:27.250 --> 0:09:30.130 I think it's really important to be a credible presidency. 0:09:30.550 --> 0:09:34.000 The other element that's very important is building trust with 0:09:34.000 --> 0:09:38.650 the other parties, especially parties that are more reluctant to 0:09:38.650 --> 0:09:41.380 order tends to be more difficult to get around the 0:09:41.380 --> 0:09:44.740 table and get to consensus. And that's what I look. 0:09:45.460 --> 0:09:47.470 And what are you communities have done over the last 0:09:47.470 --> 0:09:49.780 year and a half, you know, travelling around the world 0:09:49.780 --> 0:09:53.949 where we could and virtually travelling when we couldn't really 0:09:53.950 --> 0:09:57.500 speak with their opposite numbers and try to give the 0:09:57.620 --> 0:10:02.079 defense some momentum. This sense of urgency that COP26 will be. 0:10:02.420 --> 0:10:04.900 So it is a challenging role to sort of rule 0:10:04.900 --> 0:10:07.990 where when we take the presidency, we have to be 0:10:07.990 --> 0:10:12.910 neutral and be facilitating discussions. So it's not about taking sides, 0:10:12.910 --> 0:10:18.550 it's really about facilitating discussions, facilitating consensus and being as 0:10:18.550 --> 0:10:22.449 helpful to reach an agreement as possible. Luckily, the UK 0:10:22.450 --> 0:10:26.530 has a long history of leading international negotiations. I think 0:10:26.530 --> 0:10:28.959 we're quite well positioned, hopefully to achieve that. 0:10:34.420 --> 0:10:37.600 I must imagine that it would have been extremely difficult 0:10:37.600 --> 0:10:40.930 for the COP presidency to do its work in the 0:10:40.929 --> 0:10:43.450 last 20 months. And because, as you say, so much 0:10:43.450 --> 0:10:47.679 of the work in terms of negotiations happen face to 0:10:47.679 --> 0:10:51.490 face happen at meetings, happen with travel happened with meetings 0:10:51.490 --> 0:10:55.990 outside of the usual you F2Pool C circuit. Would you say, 0:10:55.990 --> 0:11:00.430 therefore that COVID has sort of set back negotiations quite significantly? 0:11:00.429 --> 0:11:03.070 And has that meant that the ball has been pushed 0:11:03.610 --> 0:11:05.980 a bit further into the end of this year than 0:11:05.980 --> 0:11:06.880 you might have liked? 0:11:07.270 --> 0:11:10.750 COVID has definitely had an impact, and there's no denying 0:11:11.000 --> 0:11:13.870 it has an impact not only on cop negotiations but on, 0:11:13.870 --> 0:11:17.120 you know, when everyone in the. In fact, it has 0:11:17.130 --> 0:11:19.349 is that crop has been delayed by one year, crop 0:11:19.350 --> 0:11:21.809 was meant to be in November 2020 and though we're 0:11:21.809 --> 0:11:25.930 having it in November 2021, so that's delayed by one year. 0:11:25.950 --> 0:11:29.550 What did it allow? It actually allows couple of in-person 0:11:29.730 --> 0:11:33.120 crop has to be in-person classes. A very difficult negotiations 0:11:33.120 --> 0:11:37.440 are very sensitive one. Yeah, lots of interests and parties involved. 0:11:37.710 --> 0:11:40.770 And there was a clear recognition last year in 2020, 0:11:41.040 --> 0:11:43.980 not only by the UK, but by the Chilean existing 0:11:44.220 --> 0:11:48.000 presidency and by the bureau that a cop has to 0:11:48.000 --> 0:11:50.850 be physically. You can't have a virtual negotiations with so 0:11:50.850 --> 0:11:53.610 many parties. You need to build trust. You need to 0:11:53.610 --> 0:11:56.489 look at your negotiators in the eyes and that could 0:11:56.490 --> 0:11:58.560 only be done in person. So the key impacts of 0:11:58.559 --> 0:12:01.650 COVID is that we have to delay when the global 0:12:01.650 --> 0:12:05.850 health system was more ready and not perfect, but more 0:12:05.850 --> 0:12:10.170 ready to accommodate the physical copy, flu vaccine and so on. 0:12:10.440 --> 0:12:14.220 That's why we we're having cop physically in Glasgow this week, 0:12:14.220 --> 0:12:18.110 but with a reduced number cop, not like a usual cop, 0:12:18.160 --> 0:12:21.770 it will feel different because of this your framework for 0:12:21.780 --> 0:12:24.540 preparation over the last year. I wouldn't say that it's 0:12:24.750 --> 0:12:27.030 been a setback. It's been like a change of ways 0:12:27.030 --> 0:12:32.550 of working. Obviously, a lot of negotiations and diplomatic engagement 0:12:32.700 --> 0:12:36.690 has to be done virtually, which is not the natural habitats. Diplomats. 0:12:37.110 --> 0:12:40.040 The core of diplomacy is to meet people. Face to 0:12:40.050 --> 0:12:43.319 face is to build that relationship, build that trust. We 0:12:43.320 --> 0:12:47.310 have to do that virtually, which definitely wasn't easy, but 0:12:47.309 --> 0:12:50.310 because only countries were in the same situation, we all 0:12:50.309 --> 0:12:53.970 had to adapt. So having this extra year to prepare 0:12:54.000 --> 0:12:57.150 was really useful to basically took more time to build 0:12:57.150 --> 0:13:00.870 that trust and prepare for these negotiations. There has been 0:13:00.870 --> 0:13:04.949 some physical meetings during the year, but limited to key 0:13:04.950 --> 0:13:07.890 parties and key players that had to meet physically. We've 0:13:07.890 --> 0:13:12.630 had a ministerial summit in December, so in July in London, 0:13:12.809 --> 0:13:16.980 with key ministers and negotiators on some of the areas 0:13:17.250 --> 0:13:20.219 of the Paris Agreement that still need to be resolved 0:13:20.220 --> 0:13:24.240 and you have to proceed has organized some targeted physical 0:13:24.240 --> 0:13:29.540 meetings with the parties and negotiators that's actually had to 0:13:29.630 --> 0:13:32.880 meet that particular set up. So it hasn't all been, 0:13:32.880 --> 0:13:35.610 which really has mostly been virtual, but there has been 0:13:35.610 --> 0:13:37.949 some physical engagements over the last year. 0:13:38.429 --> 0:13:41.939 Let me get into the actual nub of the negotiations 0:13:41.940 --> 0:13:46.050 and the issues that everyone hopes will be resolved in Glasgow. 0:13:46.440 --> 0:13:49.770 One of the things that people talk about is Article six, 0:13:49.770 --> 0:13:53.970 and obviously in these climate negotiations, that's only code words. 0:13:54.120 --> 0:13:57.120 It's almost like a secret language. Article six is said 0:13:57.130 --> 0:14:00.929 to be an important part of it highly technical aspect 0:14:00.929 --> 0:14:03.630 of the Paris Agreement, which you know helps government implement 0:14:03.630 --> 0:14:06.569 carbon markets. Explain to us as simply as you can 0:14:06.570 --> 0:14:09.540 perhaps what it means and where we're at in terms 0:14:09.540 --> 0:14:13.470 of realistically delivering on an outcome. Why Article six in 0:14:13.470 --> 0:14:14.430 the next couple of weeks, 0:14:15.059 --> 0:14:19.530 there are lots of jargon abbreviation the article language. When 0:14:19.530 --> 0:14:23.010 you talk about the Energy Policy Conference of the parties 0:14:23.010 --> 0:14:26.460 so articulate as you say, it is the carbon market particles. 0:14:26.850 --> 0:14:30.150 You have different sort of articles under Article six without 0:14:30.150 --> 0:14:33.150 getting too technical. The purpose of Article six is to 0:14:33.150 --> 0:14:38.370 set up a new framework for international carbon markets to operate. 0:14:38.640 --> 0:14:42.630 So that means the principle is that if you reduce 0:14:42.630 --> 0:14:46.830 emission in one part of the world, then another part 0:14:46.830 --> 0:14:50.340 of the world can claim that emission towards their targets 0:14:50.340 --> 0:14:53.780 for their commitment to reduce emissions. That's a principle. It's 0:14:53.790 --> 0:14:59.640 about international cooperation to facilitate reducing emissions and actually tapping 0:14:59.640 --> 0:15:03.650 into areas or parts of the world where reducing emissions 0:15:03.660 --> 0:15:06.690 and cheaper than other areas. So there are parts of 0:15:06.690 --> 0:15:10.890 the world where you have natural ecosystems that could be 0:15:10.890 --> 0:15:14.850 used to capture much more emissions, while some developed countries 0:15:14.850 --> 0:15:18.840 or industrial countries may have less potential to capture emissions. 0:15:18.840 --> 0:15:23.280 So it's about international cooperation on how to reduce emissions 0:15:23.490 --> 0:15:27.450 and then creating a market for this carbon to be treated. 0:15:27.460 --> 0:15:32.310 So that involves carbon rules about how you will recognize 0:15:32.310 --> 0:15:35.250 the emissions from one country to the other. Rules about 0:15:35.250 --> 0:15:39.300 how you will measure the emission reductions rule about how 0:15:39.300 --> 0:15:43.200 you will report these emissions rules, about how to make 0:15:43.200 --> 0:15:46.620 sure that these emissions are additional to what would have 0:15:46.620 --> 0:15:49.590 happened anyway, because you only want to capture the value 0:15:49.590 --> 0:15:53.190 of additional reduction that you beings. There are points about 0:15:53.190 --> 0:15:56.370 how to make sure that these emission reductions are permanent. 0:15:56.520 --> 0:15:59.310 For instance, you invest in the new forest that you want. Basically, 0:15:59.460 --> 0:16:01.800 plenty of forests, let it go for 10 years and 0:16:01.800 --> 0:16:03.900 then cut it down because the think of your emission 0:16:03.900 --> 0:16:07.020 would not be permanent. So there are lots of technical 0:16:07.260 --> 0:16:12.030 issues to resolve about how this market monopoly. But what's 0:16:12.030 --> 0:16:14.940 interesting in the Article six negotiations also is that it's 0:16:14.940 --> 0:16:19.620 not only technical. Becomes very political, very quickly. And that 0:16:19.620 --> 0:16:23.310 is why it is an area that has always been 0:16:23.310 --> 0:16:28.680 trickier in the negotiation because political interests come into play, 0:16:29.010 --> 0:16:33.600 especially about recognition of existing carbon credits, for instance, because 0:16:33.600 --> 0:16:37.140 there was another carbon trading system that has been operating 0:16:37.320 --> 0:16:41.070 up until 2026 under the Kyoto Protocol, which was the 0:16:41.070 --> 0:16:43.800 agreement before the Paris Agreement. But there was a lot 0:16:43.800 --> 0:16:47.600 of recognition about this failure and the limitations of that system, 0:16:47.610 --> 0:16:49.950 so the new system is supposed to be better. But 0:16:49.950 --> 0:16:53.070 some countries who have benefited a lot from the previous 0:16:53.070 --> 0:16:56.520 system want to keep the benefits of their system as 0:16:56.520 --> 0:16:59.280 much as possible. Poorer countries now want to make sure 0:16:59.280 --> 0:17:02.550 that a new system becomes a perversion of empirically is 0:17:02.550 --> 0:17:06.540 not the way polluted by the adverse elements in the 0:17:06.540 --> 0:17:10.290 previous system, and that can become very political. The political 0:17:10.290 --> 0:17:14.790 issues about transparency as well and how much information you 0:17:14.790 --> 0:17:17.359 want to share with the other countries. So, you know, 0:17:17.460 --> 0:17:20.429 it is very technical, but it becomes quickly, very political. 0:17:20.670 --> 0:17:23.800 And that is why in the negotiation tracks, there is 0:17:23.800 --> 0:17:26.940 a technical track and there is a ministerial track that 0:17:27.180 --> 0:17:30.090 you will have. The first week is mostly negotiators and 0:17:30.090 --> 0:17:32.790 technical negotiations at the end of the first week. Of course, 0:17:33.090 --> 0:17:35.730 they come together, come to a conclusion of where the 0:17:35.730 --> 0:17:38.580 discussions lead. And then the second week is more when 0:17:38.730 --> 0:17:42.540 ministers weaving into the conversations on the negotiations and you 0:17:42.540 --> 0:17:44.250 need both tracks to progress. 0:17:44.820 --> 0:17:47.310 So many of these things are technical, but in the 0:17:47.310 --> 0:17:49.830 end all comes down to a political decision because they 0:17:49.830 --> 0:17:53.310 are politically sensitive as well. Correct? So I would imagine 0:17:53.310 --> 0:17:56.280 that as it stands, there probably has been a lot 0:17:56.280 --> 0:17:59.460 of work done over the last few years since Paris 0:17:59.460 --> 0:18:03.600 on Article six. Would you say that the political decisions 0:18:03.600 --> 0:18:07.229 that are left over that need to be decided on 0:18:07.650 --> 0:18:09.960 in the next couple of weeks, the gaps are closer 0:18:09.970 --> 0:18:14.040 will have to negotiate this sort of teed up situation 0:18:14.280 --> 0:18:17.550 sufficiently enough so that by the time the ministers come 0:18:17.550 --> 0:18:21.149 or even the leaders come, there are enough areas for 0:18:21.240 --> 0:18:23.280 landing or trade offs in other places. 0:18:23.790 --> 0:18:27.180 We are within reach of agreements on the different areas, 0:18:27.540 --> 0:18:33.090 so the gaps are definitely plausible. The technical negotiations have progressed. 0:18:33.359 --> 0:18:37.630 We've seen, you know, movements towards consensus areas, but I see, 0:18:37.650 --> 0:18:40.740 you know, all these negotiations. You never know until the 0:18:40.740 --> 0:18:44.670 last minute because you need in the way the pressure 0:18:44.940 --> 0:18:49.170 of the negotiation. Well, having come to a deadline to 0:18:49.170 --> 0:18:52.320 see things falling into place, but we are in a 0:18:52.619 --> 0:18:56.370 better situation because we we could be and the way 0:18:56.369 --> 0:19:00.930 we have structured the programme of COP26 with the leaders 0:19:01.109 --> 0:19:03.900 coming first. So the first two days of COP will 0:19:03.900 --> 0:19:06.570 be the World Leaders Summit that will be on the 0:19:06.570 --> 0:19:09.990 first and the second plus November. And that is when 0:19:10.230 --> 0:19:14.640 the leaders from over 120 countries are going to be 0:19:14.820 --> 0:19:19.530 physically in Glasgow to really send a clear signal to 0:19:19.530 --> 0:19:22.530 the negotiators to work together and agree on the best 0:19:22.530 --> 0:19:26.780 ways and rules to accelerate the actions and resolve the issues. 0:19:26.790 --> 0:19:29.430 I think that will really set the tone, and we're 0:19:29.430 --> 0:19:32.580 counting on these 120 leaders who have accepted the invitation 0:19:32.820 --> 0:19:35.880 to send that message. Then we have the first week 0:19:35.880 --> 0:19:39.690 of negotiations and then we have ministers coming also on 0:19:39.690 --> 0:19:42.570 the second week finalising some of the deals. And that's 0:19:42.570 --> 0:19:45.540 something that most of the parties, a lot of them 0:19:45.540 --> 0:19:49.650 are seasoned negotiators to the know how it works. And although, 0:19:49.650 --> 0:19:51.540 as I said, it will feel a bit different this year, 0:19:51.750 --> 0:19:54.330 inevitably because of COVID, which is still very much the 0:19:54.350 --> 0:19:57.270 same essence of negotiation that will happen. 0:20:03.240 --> 0:20:06.540 In negotiations, I suppose it is often said that nothing's 0:20:06.540 --> 0:20:09.480 agreed until everything's agreed, right? So I'm going to get 0:20:09.480 --> 0:20:11.669 into the key things as to what the rest of 0:20:11.670 --> 0:20:14.879 the everything looks like. Another sort of catch phrase and 0:20:14.880 --> 0:20:19.800 key word that we always hear is finance. It's always finance, finance, finance. 0:20:20.100 --> 0:20:22.470 It seems to be the same every year. Every time 0:20:22.470 --> 0:20:25.360 there is a conference of parties, people talk about finance. 0:20:25.440 --> 0:20:27.899 It was before Paris was an issue. After Paris is 0:20:27.900 --> 0:20:30.750 still an issue. Very quickly sum up where we are 0:20:30.750 --> 0:20:35.160 at now in terms of parties ability to meet expectations 0:20:35.160 --> 0:20:38.070 of the $100 billion a year that has been committed to. 0:20:38.550 --> 0:20:43.560 And do you expect Glasgow to lead to some clarity there? 0:20:43.980 --> 0:20:46.890 Yes, definitely. As you said, nothing you didn't until everything's 0:20:46.890 --> 0:20:49.380 agreed in. There can be trade offs between different strands 0:20:49.380 --> 0:20:51.960 of the negotiations because they were so lots of links 0:20:51.960 --> 0:20:54.810 between them. So obviously there are links between multiplicity of 0:20:54.810 --> 0:21:00.170 common markets and finance and also how you monitor the indices. 0:21:00.180 --> 0:21:03.179 So that's why it is very important to see how 0:21:03.210 --> 0:21:06.090 the whole package. But as I said, if we don't 0:21:06.090 --> 0:21:08.040 start from the thing, we start with the Paris Agreement, 0:21:08.040 --> 0:21:11.430 that is already the starting point and it's about delivering 0:21:11.430 --> 0:21:14.840 on that Paris agreement and making it work effectively. Finance 0:21:14.850 --> 0:21:17.200 is always the tricky issue. It is a tricky issue. 0:21:17.400 --> 0:21:20.760 You know, in international negotiations in I think in general 0:21:20.760 --> 0:21:23.550 when we think of a COVID recovery source of our time. 0:21:23.550 --> 0:21:26.390 And so you can't have a discussion on financing and 0:21:26.400 --> 0:21:29.699 you shouldn't because finance are very important. So currency is 0:21:29.700 --> 0:21:32.910 one of the three pillars of the Paris Agreement on mitigation. 0:21:32.910 --> 0:21:36.600 So reducing emissions. Second pillar, another patient. And then the 0:21:36.600 --> 0:21:39.840 third pillar was on finance, and you need finance to 0:21:39.840 --> 0:21:42.629 be able to deliver the other two pillars. So where 0:21:42.630 --> 0:21:46.020 do we stand on finance? The Paris Agreement sets this 0:21:46.170 --> 0:21:51.840 100 billion figure, which is basically commitments from all the 0:21:51.840 --> 0:21:57.930 developed countries to commit to deliver 100 billion of finance 0:21:58.140 --> 0:22:01.889 per year between 2020 and 2025. And then this figure 0:22:01.890 --> 0:22:05.429 should increase to 2025. And that is one of the 0:22:05.430 --> 0:22:08.610 reasons that negotiators will discuss in Paris. So where are 0:22:08.609 --> 0:22:11.699 we now on this 100 billion? We're not quite there yet, 0:22:11.700 --> 0:22:15.300 but we are building touching distance of it. So we've 0:22:15.300 --> 0:22:18.510 seen over the last few months and weeks a number 0:22:18.510 --> 0:22:22.409 of countries who have come up with increased level of 0:22:22.410 --> 0:22:26.040 commitments the UK, ourselves, we have to commit all commitments 0:22:26.040 --> 0:22:29.550 to the international finance. We have to choose eleven point 0:22:29.550 --> 0:22:33.810 six billion pounds for the five year period. We see 0:22:33.810 --> 0:22:38.070 that the G7 nations have committed to do more towards 0:22:38.070 --> 0:22:40.919 this when it begins, and we've seen the US increasing 0:22:40.920 --> 0:22:45.510 the commitments. Canada with Germany, lots of countries have already 0:22:45.690 --> 0:22:48.629 showed that they will increase their commitments. We have a 0:22:48.630 --> 0:22:52.169 working group led by Canada and Germany that will be 0:22:52.170 --> 0:22:55.740 reporting at COP on the progress on the 100 billion. 0:22:55.920 --> 0:22:58.470 There will be a report on the progress towards this 0:22:58.470 --> 0:23:01.260 $100 billion and the one thing that I want to 0:23:01.260 --> 0:23:04.680 mention on this one independent. It's not only public and 0:23:04.680 --> 0:23:09.150 money from governments, it's also about mobilising private finance and 0:23:09.150 --> 0:23:13.050 development finance from international development banks. We've just seen last 0:23:13.050 --> 0:23:16.540 week that ADB has announced 100 billion contribution to commit 0:23:16.560 --> 0:23:20.070 finance continues for between 2019 and 2030. So that is 0:23:20.070 --> 0:23:22.890 20 billion more than what they had previously announced, with 0:23:22.890 --> 0:23:27.510 the International Development Bank's increasing their commitment to international Islamic finance. 0:23:27.840 --> 0:23:30.660 We also see that the private sector. So as I said, 0:23:30.660 --> 0:23:35.550 leveraging private finance is very important to deliver the needs 0:23:35.790 --> 0:23:39.720 of the finance for mitigation and adaptation. And we have 0:23:39.720 --> 0:23:43.679 launched through the Makhani, who was a former central bank 0:23:43.950 --> 0:23:47.850 governor in the UK Islam, the Glasgow Financial Alliance for 0:23:47.850 --> 0:23:52.810 Net Zero. And that alliance mobilised the financial sector to 0:23:53.160 --> 0:23:57.000 flow to net zero, and it now represents over 90 0:23:57.210 --> 0:24:01.010 trillion in assets just in over a few months this year. 0:24:01.020 --> 0:24:03.330 So we see that in the private sector is also 0:24:03.330 --> 0:24:05.800 mobilising more and more, you know, to fit the bill. 0:24:06.060 --> 0:24:07.170 These low carbon transition? 0:24:07.560 --> 0:24:10.450 Yeah, I mean, the issue of finance comes up at 0:24:10.470 --> 0:24:13.770 almost every cop, and it's something which developing and least 0:24:13.770 --> 0:24:17.730 developed countries obviously look to in terms of commitments from 0:24:17.730 --> 0:24:20.700 the developed countries to step up and as a signal 0:24:20.700 --> 0:24:24.930 of their commitments. And one other thing which I should raise, 0:24:24.930 --> 0:24:27.989 which is of interest to small and island nations, is 0:24:27.990 --> 0:24:32.340 obviously the issue of again climate negotiator catch phrase loss 0:24:32.340 --> 0:24:37.680 and damage. Explain briefly what loss and damage means, and again, 0:24:37.980 --> 0:24:41.310 what progress has been made in the last couple of years, 0:24:41.310 --> 0:24:44.340 which lead us now up to here and what you 0:24:44.340 --> 0:24:46.770 think Glasgow can deliver on loss and damage. 0:24:47.100 --> 0:24:51.449 It's really about recognising that even if we stopped all 0:24:51.450 --> 0:24:55.619 emissions now. So even if we reach net zero tomorrow, 0:24:55.980 --> 0:24:58.850 the impacts of climate change will still be felt because 0:24:58.850 --> 0:25:01.689 two greenhouse gases are still trapped in the atmosphere. So 0:25:01.950 --> 0:25:06.010 it's really. Countries will still inevitably suffer from the impacts 0:25:06.010 --> 0:25:09.070 of climate change and the loss and damage that India 0:25:09.070 --> 0:25:12.340 is about cognizant the loss and the damages that some 0:25:12.340 --> 0:25:15.670 of the most vulnerable country face. Making sure that there 0:25:15.670 --> 0:25:19.659 is enough finance for these countries to be able to 0:25:19.780 --> 0:25:24.100 adapt each resilience in the face of the impacts of 0:25:24.100 --> 0:25:27.639 climate change again is not only about finance, obviously, you 0:25:27.640 --> 0:25:30.970 know you need finance to do that, but you also 0:25:30.970 --> 0:25:34.360 need a plan. If you are of another country, you 0:25:34.359 --> 0:25:36.429 need to come up with a plan to say, OK, 0:25:36.670 --> 0:25:39.540 this is how we fight the impacts of climate change. 0:25:39.540 --> 0:25:43.390 This is how I will adapt my community, how will 0:25:43.390 --> 0:25:45.700 adapt my economy. This is how I will make my 0:25:45.700 --> 0:25:48.610 country more resilient. So I think the flip side of 0:25:48.940 --> 0:25:54.310 the finance from developed countries, it's about definable countries recognizing 0:25:54.310 --> 0:25:58.210 what they need that money for and being ready to 0:25:58.210 --> 0:26:02.379 use that money in an effective way so that money 0:26:02.380 --> 0:26:05.830 can really go directly to where it is needed for 0:26:05.830 --> 0:26:10.000 the local communities and for employment and livelihoods of people 0:26:10.000 --> 0:26:13.240 who are the most impacted. It hasn't always been easy 0:26:13.600 --> 0:26:20.260 to secure these national adaptation plans for adaptation communications from 0:26:20.260 --> 0:26:23.990 some countries, some good neighbor countries who clearly recognize that 0:26:23.990 --> 0:26:28.420 they needs help. But it's sometimes difficult to identify what's 0:26:28.420 --> 0:26:31.960 to help build towards. There's been a lot of work 0:26:31.960 --> 0:26:36.730 happening in Spanish on adaptation and resilience and loss and 0:26:36.730 --> 0:26:40.840 damage to really recognize what sort of project we need. 0:26:41.230 --> 0:26:43.840 Yeah, I would imagine that this is probably one of 0:26:43.840 --> 0:26:47.680 those issues which can be highly politically sensitive as well, 0:26:47.680 --> 0:26:51.340 because some people use the word reparations. Some people use 0:26:51.340 --> 0:26:54.580 the word responsibility, so it's going to be tough. Has 0:26:54.580 --> 0:26:57.879 there been enough sort of closing of gaps between those 0:26:57.880 --> 0:26:59.800 who would need the funds and need the help and 0:26:59.800 --> 0:27:01.990 those who are in the position to provide it and 0:27:01.990 --> 0:27:04.780 recognizing that there is a need to close this gap? 0:27:05.230 --> 0:27:08.850 I don't really like them to produce the words reparation responsibility. 0:27:09.250 --> 0:27:13.320 There is a responsibility, but it's a responsibly today that 0:27:13.330 --> 0:27:19.780 everyone has to accelerate their actions to reduce climate change, 0:27:19.780 --> 0:27:23.710 but also adapt to climate change. So talking about reparation, 0:27:24.010 --> 0:27:27.670 blaming and others, that doesn't really help move the needle 0:27:27.880 --> 0:27:30.939 and resolve the issues. So that's very much a spirit 0:27:31.030 --> 0:27:33.850 of the Paris Agreement to the Paris Agreement was where 0:27:34.030 --> 0:27:37.149 all the parties recognized that there is a common responsibility, 0:27:37.150 --> 0:27:41.980 common but differentiated responsibility to actually act, he said about 0:27:42.070 --> 0:27:44.650 some parties waiting to see what others will do so 0:27:44.690 --> 0:27:48.820 for parties acting together. Obviously, some parties are better placed 0:27:49.030 --> 0:27:53.050 to finance than other parties and about sharing and collaborating 0:27:53.320 --> 0:27:57.129 and recognizing where responsibility lies and when we're shown where 0:27:57.130 --> 0:28:00.460 our strengths and weaknesses lie to be able to collaborate effectively. 0:28:00.730 --> 0:28:03.910 But that's much more the spirit of the international organization 0:28:03.910 --> 0:28:06.369 since the Paris Agreement. It was not like that before. 0:28:06.369 --> 0:28:09.370 Under the Kyoto Protocol, it was very much A and 0:28:09.790 --> 0:28:12.609 B countries and very much an acquisition. I think that 0:28:12.609 --> 0:28:16.060 was really changed in Paris. This was his recognition that 0:28:16.060 --> 0:28:18.100 it is a common issue and that we can only 0:28:18.100 --> 0:28:20.830 solve it if we work together. Finance has to flow 0:28:20.830 --> 0:28:23.950 from some countries to the. It's support flowing to the 0:28:23.950 --> 0:28:28.240 right place for the right purpose. And it's about taking responsibility. 0:28:28.540 --> 0:28:31.240 Then there is this report that's a feature of the 0:28:31.240 --> 0:28:35.560 Paris Agreement, which is the adaptation communications. So countries are 0:28:35.560 --> 0:28:39.700 meant to submit adaptation communications to Germany, where they recognize 0:28:39.700 --> 0:28:43.030 the need for adaptation resilience based on the damage that 0:28:43.030 --> 0:28:46.360 they are already facing or that they think they will 0:28:46.360 --> 0:28:48.700 face in the future based on projections. So things are 0:28:48.700 --> 0:28:52.630 really critical reports. And finally, when you look at the 0:28:52.640 --> 0:28:56.469 research on many and a lot of countries have to 0:28:56.740 --> 0:29:01.060 find it hard to submit these national communications or a 0:29:01.060 --> 0:29:04.120 more detailed national adaptation plans. So that's why a lot 0:29:04.120 --> 0:29:07.300 of the international work now is about helping vulnerable countries 0:29:07.510 --> 0:29:11.260 not only access finance but also understand how they can 0:29:11.260 --> 0:29:14.740 protect themselves. A lot of support, not only on financial 0:29:14.740 --> 0:29:18.790 terms with our strengthened of capacity building technical assistance. To 0:29:18.790 --> 0:29:23.390 understand how you can protect yourself from these disasters and 0:29:23.440 --> 0:29:27.220 how you can adapt and build your resilience to finance 0:29:27.220 --> 0:29:31.150 is one thing. But I think building capacity, resilience and 0:29:31.330 --> 0:29:33.760 technical assistance is a big part of the offer as 0:29:33.760 --> 0:29:34.780 well to whenever countries 0:29:35.120 --> 0:29:38.830 going to start closing off our conversation. It's been fascinating 0:29:39.310 --> 0:29:42.040 and I'll talk a little bit maybe about process now 0:29:42.040 --> 0:29:45.970 as we conclude. Firstly, explain to the layman what's going 0:29:45.970 --> 0:29:48.760 to happen in the next couple of days. You've already 0:29:48.760 --> 0:29:51.070 made a brief reference to this in terms of how 0:29:51.070 --> 0:29:53.590 the process is going to go and what the public 0:29:53.590 --> 0:29:55.900 can expect in terms of the news that's going to 0:29:55.900 --> 0:30:00.640 start emerging from Glasgow. That's one. And secondly, as will 0:30:00.640 --> 0:30:03.850 talk about what you make about leaders. Who will or 0:30:03.850 --> 0:30:06.890 will not be present in Glasgow for good and for bad? 0:30:06.910 --> 0:30:10.510 Much of what happens at these meetings usually boils down 0:30:10.510 --> 0:30:14.040 to news about leaders actions on the ground, right? And 0:30:14.050 --> 0:30:17.020 when you look at Copenhagen in 2009, there was talk 0:30:17.020 --> 0:30:21.130 about Obama and his secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and 0:30:21.130 --> 0:30:23.710 then in Paris, it was Obama again and John Kerry. 0:30:24.160 --> 0:30:27.280 This is now President Joe Biden's time. It's unclear whether 0:30:27.280 --> 0:30:29.530 President Xi Jinping is going to be there. Probably not. 0:30:29.950 --> 0:30:33.400 But explain, as well as we conclude, the importance of 0:30:33.400 --> 0:30:36.280 having leaders stay and what their role will be in 0:30:36.280 --> 0:30:37.180 the final reckoning. 0:30:37.360 --> 0:30:41.860 COP26 will formally open on Sunday, so the first that 0:30:41.860 --> 0:30:45.700 will be when the negotiation will open. And then the 0:30:45.700 --> 0:30:48.220 world leaders are coming on the Monday and the Tuesday. 0:30:48.370 --> 0:30:51.250 So the World Leaders Summit is on the Monday and Tuesday, 0:30:51.250 --> 0:30:56.050 and that is where we can expect over 120 leaders 0:30:56.230 --> 0:31:01.640 coming physically in Glasgow and deprogram Ford Explorer Leader Summit 0:31:01.750 --> 0:31:06.280 last for two. This will really allow these leaders to 0:31:06.520 --> 0:31:09.640 send a clear signal to the negotiators about actually meeting 0:31:09.850 --> 0:31:13.930 what commitments they are making political, basically sending clear political messages. 0:31:14.140 --> 0:31:18.070 The beginning, of course, in terms of net zero commitments, 0:31:18.070 --> 0:31:21.820 in terms of adaptation, in terms of finance, in terms 0:31:21.820 --> 0:31:26.890 of some tricky and important policy areas like energy transition, 0:31:27.220 --> 0:31:33.010 like zero emission vehicles like forest conservation that will be 0:31:33.010 --> 0:31:35.620 the core of the World Leaders Summit. So you have 0:31:35.620 --> 0:31:39.550 a plenary opening on the first day. So on Monday morning, 0:31:39.830 --> 0:31:43.060 then in the afternoon, there is an event where leaders 0:31:43.060 --> 0:31:47.470 are being invited to reflect on what Conference six will 0:31:47.470 --> 0:31:51.580 achieve and also provide examples of success and solutions that 0:31:51.580 --> 0:31:54.760 they experience in their countries. So starting with saying this 0:31:54.760 --> 0:31:57.060 is how it works in my country, this is these 0:31:57.070 --> 0:32:00.040 are the lessons learned from my country on the second day, 0:32:00.040 --> 0:32:03.220 they will be two kind of theme events one on 0:32:03.220 --> 0:32:06.550 forest and land use. And that's a very important moment 0:32:06.550 --> 0:32:11.740 for countries to show the importance of linking climate and nature. 0:32:12.250 --> 0:32:17.229 And that will be about leaders endorsing the declaration on 0:32:17.380 --> 0:32:22.000 protecting forests and sustainable land use. And in the afternoon 0:32:22.240 --> 0:32:26.020 there is a leader level session on innovation. So looking 0:32:26.110 --> 0:32:30.610 at innovations in sectors like energy transport, the Agenda for 0:32:30.610 --> 0:32:33.560 the World Leaders Summit is kind of a plenary, the 0:32:33.580 --> 0:32:36.100 statesmen from some leaders. And then it will go into 0:32:36.280 --> 0:32:39.880 details on some policy areas where we expect leaders to 0:32:39.880 --> 0:32:44.410 really show that they are taking commitments themselves. It's important 0:32:44.410 --> 0:32:48.100 to have the leaders there. Obviously, we never have all 0:32:48.100 --> 0:32:52.030 the leaders. I think we're ready, very happy with 120 leaders. 0:32:52.270 --> 0:32:55.750 When we started thinking about hosting a physical leader level 0:32:55.750 --> 0:33:00.340 event in November 2021, we thought it's infuriating and the 0:33:00.340 --> 0:33:02.920 way 120. So I think that's a pretty big success 0:33:02.920 --> 0:33:05.770 in itself. If some leaders are not able to come 0:33:05.770 --> 0:33:09.580 and there are different reasons for COVID reasons, gender politics 0:33:09.670 --> 0:33:13.000 reasons than their ministers will be there to being cop 0:33:13.240 --> 0:33:16.420 and they will be giving their national statements during cop 0:33:16.420 --> 0:33:19.660 and the negotiators will be there. We expect in negotiations 0:33:19.660 --> 0:33:23.380 delegations from all the countries will be represented. So I 0:33:23.380 --> 0:33:26.120 think this leader setting the signal at the beginning, of course, 0:33:26.440 --> 0:33:28.660 is really important that that's not the end, it's the 0:33:28.660 --> 0:33:31.690 beginning of the cop. And then we'll have the negotiators 0:33:31.690 --> 0:33:34.870 and the ministers who will carry on on their mandate 0:33:34.870 --> 0:33:36.940 from their leader during the two weeks. 0:33:37.300 --> 0:33:40.480 Well, you know, as all these negotiations go, they usually 0:33:40.480 --> 0:33:42.940 go right up to the last minute and they'll be 0:33:43.330 --> 0:33:46.840 long nights, early mornings, whatever it is, we all hope 0:33:47.200 --> 0:33:50.680 that your presidency will be able to deliver a good 0:33:50.680 --> 0:33:53.459 outcome in the meantime. Thank you so much, Isabelle De 0:33:53.470 --> 0:33:54.040 lobbying for us. 0:33:54.130 --> 0:33:55.530 Thank you, Jamie. Pleasure. 0:33:57.200 --> 0:33:59.870 And thanks for listening to the climate conversations. Stay up 0:33:59.870 --> 0:34:03.350 to date on CNN's coverage of climate change on CNN Asia. 0:34:03.530 --> 0:34:06.230 You can also find this and other senior podcasts on 0:34:06.230 --> 0:34:09.830 our website and on iTunes and Spotify. The team behind 0:34:09.830 --> 0:34:13.219 this podcast are Christina, Robert, Lisa Ling and Erin Low. 0:34:13.520 --> 0:34:15.260 And I'm Jamie Hall till next week.