Is It Still Worth Attending COP Summits?

And why you should engage anyway (even if it feels pointless)

As world leaders gather this week for COP26 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, one question that will inevitably pop up is whether climate campaigners and relevant orgs should boycott the event.

At the weekend, I saw this exact question posed on social media. While I left a brief comment on that post, I’d like to elaborate on it.

COPs have a fatal flaw.

COP events have a poor track record of delivering the radical structural change the world needs since their inception. The original Kyoto Protocol was ineffective, hence why it would later be amended by the Doha Amendment, then succeeded with the Paris Agreement in 2015. While the Paris Agreement was finalised at COP26 with the Glasgow Climate Act, it still isn’t enough to ensure that global temperature rises do not exceed 1.5 degrees. Just a matter of days ago, the average global temperature was recorded as being over 2 degrees above average for the first time.

So why is this the case? This is because capitalist governments (especially in the West) choose to protect the interests of the rich and powerful rather than the needs of humanity. Thanks to both historical and contemporary power imbalances driving them, it’s easy for Western powers and interests to dominate the conversation. Hence, many conclude that COP serves as a meeting spot for those with the power to meet each other while blocking as much action as possible.

With COP28, there have already been scandals — and it’s not even begun yet. Leaked documents show that the UAE planned to use its role as host country to directly negotiate oil and gas deals with 27 other countries. This is before mentioning that COP28 president Dr Sultan al-Jaber also runs the UAE’s state-owned oil company.

So, given how COP events have proven to be ineffective, is it worth boycotting them?

While I understand the sentiment, boycotting will not likely achieve anything. Engaging COP in good faith — all while understanding its history and challenges — is the best way to navigate it. Someone’s got to sit at the negotiating table, meeting rooms, speakers’ hall, and other parts of the venue. Engaging may feel like a waste of time, but it really isn’t. This is because the real successes are on the ground, not in the negotiation rooms.

Events like COP are a golden opportunity for climate campaigners of all sorts to network. Thousands of people worldwide coming together in one location to share lived experiences, strategies, and moral support on achieving structural change is a rare opportunity. It’s where you can immediately get a much-needed dose of optimism following the inevitable feelings of despair emanating from the negotiating table.

It’s where you can meet new people who share the same interests as you and can signpost you to organisations and advice on how to get involved in effective campaigning. And if you’re in a country where political tactics used by the mainstream left are completely ineffective (if democracy even exists), that’s a huge deal. All of this comes together to further build the climate movement, furthering revolutionary optimism and thus forcing swift political action to address the climate crisis. That shortened time frame can make all the difference.

Recalling my own experience

From my own limited experience engaging COP, I recall attending the COP26 protests back in 2021 in Glasgow. Because Glasgow wasn’t too far from where I lived, I traveled up. It was also one of my first climate events and changed my life. I met many of my future friends there and managed to grow as a person and that is partly why I’m pivoting to a remote-based career going forwards. I wouldn’t be where I am today if I hadn’t gone to COP26.

In fact, I’d like to experience a future COP. As I have acquired more experience and involvement with climate campaigning since it’ll be very interesting to revisit such an environment. Especially if I were to access the venue as a delegate for an organisation. Who knows what the future holds?

Side note (that’s not directly related to COP) you are also more likely to be able to travel internationally to attend COP if you represent an organisation. Traveling internationally is a life-changing experience period (especially if you’re from the global south and wouldn’t be able to go otherwise). However, given the nature of a climate event, you’re more likely to be able to travel there sustainably too. Being able to travel the world while fighting to keep it alive is the best of both worlds.

Final thoughts

Even though COP28 likely won’t lead to the international agreements required to limit global temperature increases swiftly, the opportunities outside the negotiating rooms make it worth engaging. That’s something I hope to experience again.

Sources:

1. https://capitalmonitor.ai/institution/government/history-of-the-cop-summits/
2. https://www.earth.com/news/earths-global-temperature-exceeded-2c-for-the-first-time/

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