COP26 started on Sunday 31 November 2021. The first week of the conference saw a two-day World Leaders Summit and respective days on finance, energy, youth empowerment and nature. ClimaTalk has been tracking these topics and in this article presents the headline outcomes and thoughts from week one of COP26. We have also highlighted the developments and failures in the inclusion of Indigenous Peoples thus far at COP26. Some of the biggest positive outputs include: the pledge to end deforestation by 2030, an agreement to end overseas public funding of fossil fuels by 2022, commitments to climate education, and finance for protecting Indigenous Peoples’ forest rights.

COY16 took place in Glasgow on 30 to 31 October 2020 and saw delegates from 140 countries attend. Robin Fontaine reflects on his experience at COY16 and states that the most significant output of COY16 was the Global Youth Statement, which demanded youth inclusion during policy negotiations and climate change governance.

ClimaTalk’s previous article, The Paris Agreement: A Focus on Unresolved Issues, delved into aspects of the Paris Agreement that were left unresolved at the end of the 25th Conference of the Parties (COP). These included Article 6 and carbon markets, funding mechanisms for loss and damage, the timescales for the submission of updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), climate finance, and how to quantify and report emissions.