What is COP26 and why is it important to Catholics?

Young Christian Climate relay walkers on way to COP26 at Buckingham Palace .. Image: ICN/JS

A guide to COP26, the UN climate summit which is due to take place in Glasgow in November 2021 and what Catholics can expect Pope Francis will be asking from World Leader's to protect and defend Our Common Home.

What is COP26?

COP26 is this year's annual UN climate conference. The acronym 'COP' stands for 'conference of parties' and we are now at the 26th occurrence of this monumental event. The COP is a summit of all the countries which are part of the UN's climate change treaty, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change or 'UNFCCC'. There are 197 members of this process and they are known as 'parties' to the treaty.

Governments and negotiators will travel to the conference to discuss and negotiate the climate crisis and how world leaders can work together to protect and defend Our Common Home. This year's conference happens against a backdrop of the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, multiple climate disasters and a horrifying IPCC report that set a bleak picture for our future on earth.

Where is COP26 being held?

This year the UK is hosting COP26, with our Government holding the COP presidency. The event is being held in Glasgow and will take place between 1st to 12th November 2021.

Why is COP26 important to Catholics?

The encyclical 'Laudato Si' motivated many Catholics to take action on global warming and COP26 is the global centre of negotiations and activism to protect Our Common Home.

Pope Francis has warned that it would be "a scandal" if the money governments are spending to rebuild economies and save businesses in the recovery from the pandemic "were to focus on rescuing those industries that do not contribute to the inclusion of the excluded, the promotion of the least, the common good or the care of creation".

In 2019, Pope Francis declared a 'climate emergency' and since then has been working hard to hold Government's across the world to account and urging for radical action to tackle the climate crisis and protect the vulnerable and poor who are at the forefront of this issue.

This month the Vatican is due to meet with some of the world's biggest multinational oil companies and is expected to call for radical action to transition away from fossil fuels and towards green energy.

When the Pope arrives in Glasgow, he is expected to urge world leaders to commit to the 1.5 Paris Agreement target of global warming and demand radical action to fight the climate crisis across the world.

How can Catholics get involved?

COP26 will be the largest gathering of world leaders ever to take place on British soil. Many thousands of other people will also gather for the COP, both inside and outside the conference centre. Many of these activists will be Catholics, joining faith NGOs such as UK based charities CAFOD, SCIAF and the umbrella of international Catholic relief orgs Caritas Internationalis.

Discussions at COP26 are likely to focus on whether the commitments made by countries to cut emissions will be enough to halt dangerous temperature rises and get the world on track to reaching 'net zero' as soon as possible. The UK government set a 2050 net zero target after calls from campaigners up and down the country, including thousands of Catholics.

Outside the conference, thousands of campaigners will put pressure on COP delegates to show the ambition needed to urgently cut greenhouse gas emissions. Various events are planned, including large marches and demonstrations. More than 500,000 people were estimated to have joined a march in Madrid during COP25. If you are keen to take part in one of these many mobilisations, take a look at CAFOD and SCIAF's call for campaigners to join them in a series of mobilisations throughout the conference. If you are unable to join campaigners, you can still take part in campaigns via petitions, letters and online talks with Catholic organisations across the country.