Where Are We Going, Where Have We Been

Anyone interested in the Paris Climate conference, and particularly the agreement that is shaping up on greenhouse gas emissions control, should take a look at this summary by Megan Darby at Climate Home. It succinctly summarizes what observers have been noting for months as national plans accumulated in Bonn: broad international cooperation around GHG controls, while welcome, is inadequate; further 'ramping up' will be essential in coming years; attention will need to turn to 'adaptation', i.e. helping vulnerable societies survive the inevitable changes; and funding for that adaptation will be essential.

There may be further surprises in Paris, and no doubt there will be some bitter disagreement, particularly around funding from wealthy nations. The larger shape of what will be possible in Paris, though, is pretty well determined by the INDCs, and Darby's assessment seems to me to be a reasonable, half-full/half-empty view.