After COP27: where do we go from here?

Kitty O’Connor explains the importance of the COP27 climate conference and shares some things people can do to help tackle the climate emergency here in Fife.

Why was COP27 important?

The climate emergency is a real and urgent problem, affecting people and places on a local and global level. The UK and Scottish Governments have legally binding climate change policies, and plans to reduce carbon emissions and address the effects of climate change. So does Fife Council at a more local level.

The annual Conference of the Parties (COP) brings nations from across the globe together to agree measures on tackling climate change. This year’s conference, COP27, ran from Sunday 6th November to Sunday 20th November in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, hoping to build on the outcomes and momentum of COP26, which was held in Glasgow in 2021.

COP27 had an ambitious and important aim – to ensure the full implementation of the Paris Agreement, a legally binding international treaty on climate change, adopted by 196 parties at COP21 in Paris in 2015.

A shared vision of humanity was at the heart of the conference, ensuring global efforts to address climate also address some of the most fundamental needs of people everywhere, including water security, food security, health and energy security. Countries were urged to focus on making transformational change in three key areas:

1. Ensuring the implementation of the Paris Agreement and putting negotiations into concrete actions.
2. Cementing progress on climate mitigation, adaptation, finance and loss and damage, while significantly increasing finance to tackle the impacts of climate change.
3. Embedding the principles of transparency and accountability throughout the UN Climate Change process.

In his opening speech the Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs and COP27 President Sameh Shoukry said: “COP27 creates a unique opportunity in 2022 for the world to unite, to make multilateralism work by restoring trust and coming together at the highest levels to increase our ambition and action in fighting climate change. COP27 must be remembered as the ‘Implementation COP’ – the one where we restore the grand bargain that is at the centre of the Paris Agreement.”

What can we do, here and now?

If you are wondering how COP27 relates to us, as individuals and within our communities here in Fife, the UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell was unequivocal on our own roles and responsibilities to tackling the climate crisis. He said: “Everybody, every single day, everywhere in the world, needs to do everything they possibly can to avert the climate crisis. COP27 sets out a new direction for a new era of implementation: where outcomes from the formal and informal process truly begin to come together to drive greater climate progress — and accountability for that progress.”

Regardless of the outcome of COP27, it is important that we all continue to work towards tackling the climate emergency. There are plenty of things that we can do right now that will have an immediate impact, and some things that we can do that can shape our actions and communities in the near future:

1. Keep climate change policy a priority by making your local MP, MSPs and Councillors aware of the support for tackling the climate emergency. You could speak to them directly, or add your voice to consultations on areas such as Fife Council’s Local Development Plan (open until 19th December).
2. Work towards reducing your own carbon emissions. You can use a carbon footprinting tool, such as this easy-to-use one from WWF, if you’re unsure of the impact of your activities and lifestyle. For more inspiration on the actions you can take, see the Climate Action Fife Energy use accounts for two-thirds of our personal carbon emissions in Scotland, so this could be a good place to start.
3. Connect to what is happening in your own community and don’t be afraid to speak up! You could join a local climate action group, take part in a climate cafe or simply talk about climate change in your every day conversations. If you would like to learn more, you could join a Climate KnowHow course.

Above all, remember to keep people and the places we care for at the heart of climate action. And remember that there is nothing more inspiring than a good news story, so make sure to celebrate and share your successes.

Kitty O’Connor, Energy Advice Team Leader (Carbon Reduction), Greener Kirkcaldy

The featured image shows the COP27 Green Zone and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 International License.