The Copenhagen Agreement: What it Was, and What it Accomplished
The Copenhagen Agreement, also known as the Copenhagen Accord, was a political agreement reached at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2009. Although it was not a legally binding treaty, it was a significant milestone in the global effort to address climate change, as it represented the first time that developed and developing countries had agreed on a common goal for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The agreement was the product of intense negotiations between representatives of nearly 200 countries, and it faced significant criticism for being too weak and lacking the necessary commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, it did establish a framework for monitoring and reporting emissions, and it recognized the need for a goal of limiting global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
The Copenhagen Agreement is significant for a number of reasons. First, it represented a shift in the approach to tackling climate change. Prior to Copenhagen, climate negotiations were based on the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities”, which separated developed and developing countries into different categories. The Copenhagen Agreement recognized that climate change was a global problem that required a global response, and it called for all countries to take action based on their respective capabilities.
Second, the Copenhagen Agreement established a new financial mechanism for supporting climate action in developing countries. Developed countries committed to providing financial resources to help developing countries mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Finally, the Copenhagen Agreement helped pave the way for the Paris Agreement in 2015. The Paris Agreement built upon the framework established in Copenhagen and set more ambitious goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, with the aim of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
While the Copenhagen Agreement fell short of its lofty goals, it represented a significant step forward in the global effort to address climate change. It recognized that climate change was a global problem that required a global response, and it established a framework for monitoring and reporting emissions. Furthermore, it helped to build the political momentum that led to the Paris Agreement and set the stage for even more ambitious climate action in the years to come.