Countries agree to deal at COP28 climate summit
COP28 president Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber speaks during the Transforming Food Systems in the Face of Climate Change event on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit at Dubai Expo on December 1, 2023.
Ludovic Marin | Afp | Getty Images
Government ministers representing nearly 200 countries on Wednesday agreed to a deal that calls for a transition away from fossil fuels, after a previous proposal was met with heated and widespread backlash.
“With an unprecedented reference to transitioning away from all fossil fuels, The UAE Consensus is delivering a paradigm shift that has the potential to redefine our economies,” the summit’s UAE presidency said on social media.
The latest proposal published by the UAE earlier on Wednesday called for “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner, accelerating action in this critical decade, so as to achieve net zero by 2050 in keeping with the science.”
The deal text also urged for “accelerating efforts towards the phase-down of unabated coal power” and for “tripling renewable energy capacity globally and doubling the global average annual rate of energy efficiency improvements by 2030.”
Critically, the proposal did not mandate an absolute phase-out of hydrocarbons.
Indian environmental activist Licypriya Kangujam holds up a sign that reads: “End Fossil Fuel. Save Our Planet And Our Future” after running onto the stage during a High-Level Event on day eleven of the UNFCCC COP28 Climate Conference as negotiations go into their final phase on December 11, 2023 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Sean Gallup | Getty Images News | Getty Images
This is breaking news and will be updated.
