COP 21
From 30 November to 11 December Paris will host one of the most important climate negotiations since the Kyoto Protocol came into force in 1997; the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP 21).
Comprising over 190 world Governments, COP will convene for the 21st time, with the intention of reaching a new global agreement to mitigate climate change and keep global average temperature rise below 2 °C relative to the level before the industrial revolution.
In addition to measures to mitigate further climate change through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, adaptation to existing and anticipated climate change will also be at the heart of any agreement. These efforts will take into account the needs and capacities of each country. Any agreement is planned to enter into force in 2020 and would be designed to be sustainable to enable long-term change.
The Met Office plays a lead role in providing impartial scientific advice to the UK Government to underpin the UK's climate negotiations. As in previous years, we will attend the Paris meeting - known as COP21 - to communicate with several thousand conference delegates about the most relevant scientific findings and provide any scientific support as needed to the UK Government's negotiators from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC).
COP21 is therefore an opportunity to share the Met Office's latest science on climate change to a large and diverse audience including the many hundreds of scientists and policy makers who use our science to inform their research and decision-making.
The Met Office Hadley Centre will share an update on the latest scientific research findings on climate change at COP21. Highlights include:
- A synthesis of the latest climate observations in the context of longer-term climate change.
- Climate extremes and case studies looking at natural and human contributions to extreme weather events world-wide.
- Climate modelling using carbon emission scenarios for keeping global temperature rise below different temperature thresholds.
- The effect of feedback processes from wetlands and permafrost regions on carbon budgets.
- Benefits for future climate and weather extremes from adopting mitigation measures.
- Food security benefits from adopting adaptation and mitigation measures.
Our scientists will jointly host a side event in Paris with the University of Reading's Walker Institute. We will also be taking part in a number of side events including some with our partners.
| Date | Time | Title | Participants | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 1 December | 13:15 - 14:45 | Delivering the Sendai Framwork for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030: Resilience in Action. Aligning adaptation efforts to the Sendai Framework can deliver practical action and build resilience. Lessons from Parties and the UN Plan of Action on DRR for Resilience are considered. Implementation of sectoral approaches, transboundary and regional cooperation will be addressed as well. Organising Partners: UNISDR, FAO, WMO, IFAD, IPCC, UN-OCHA, UNICEF, UNESCO, UNESCAP, UNOPS, UNU, WFP, UNDP | Keynote Address: President of Kiribati | Observer Room 01 |
| Tuesday 1 December | 16:45 - 18:15 | From Carbon Budgets to strategies for climate resilience. How is climate changing and what is expected in response to future carbon budgets? For various scenarios we present mitigation benefits, assess risks and highlight vulnerabilities. We consider strategies and tools for climate resilience, covering agriculture, food, livelihoods and infrastructure. Organising Partners: Met Office, University of Reading's Walker Institute and Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) | Speakers: Met Office Hadley Centre Walker Institute, University of Reading Norwegian Refugee Council/Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre | Observer Room 01 |
| Friday 4 December | 13:15-14:45 | Science-based climate information - bringing climate science and climate policy closer. Organising Partners: Future for world food and nutrition security (IFAD), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), WMO | Speakers: Met Office Hadley Centre Dr Richard Jones | Africa Pavilion |
| Monday 7 December | 11:00-11:50 | Food insecurity and climate change Organising Partners: World Food Programme, Met Office | Speakers: | Climate Studio |
| Wednesday 9 December | 09:15-10:45 | The feasibility of emission reductions and their associated climate impacts, an AVOID 2 perspective. Organising Partners: Grantham Institute | Speakers: Met Office Hadley Centre Dr Dan Bernie | OECD Pavilion Blue Zone |
| Wednesday 9 December | 19:15-20:00 | Corporate adaptation action and community resilience Coordinated by the CDP | Speakers: Met Office Hadley Centre Professor Stephen Belcher (Speaker) | EU Pavilion |
| Thursday 10 December | 14:30-16:00 | Science for managing climate risks across Europe. The Met Office Hadley Centre will showcase a selection of EU projects and how they complement its climate programme to improve the science base for informing decision-making on mitigation and resilience to climate change. The talk and Q&A session will focus on attribution (EUCLEIA), climate services (EUPORIAS) and impacts (HELIX). | Speakers: Met Office Hadley Centre Professor Stephen Belcher (Chair) Dr Richard Betts (Speaker) Kirsty Lewis (Panel) | EU Pavilion Hall 2B, Luxembourg Room |
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