COP28: What is the Global Stocktake?
COP28 is well underway in the United Arab Emirates. One of the major outcomes expected from the conference is the first Global Stocktake (GST). This is the first international accounting document that will analyse the world’s progress towards reaching the Paris Agreement goals, particularly the primary goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels.
The first draft of the GST, the ‘building blocks’ document, was circulated on Friday 1st December. It states that countries are significantly off-track for achieving the goal, and notes a rapidly narrowing window for significant action to be taken. While this result was expected and generally accepted by COP attendees, debate is now underway on the specific actions needed to limit warming. A key issue is the wording around the future of fossil fuels. While many call for an immediate ‘phase out’ out of coal, oil, and gas; fossil fuel rich countries strongly object. Even the weaker goal of a ‘phase down’ has been met with resistance. In context, the 2023 IPCC report calls for deep reductions in emissions to achieve the key Paris Agreement goals.
