While certain goals were not met, there were a number of agreements made during COP26 that helped define progress and determine how it will be measured. Here’s a summary of the final agreements made at the conference. 

 

Additional pledges and net zero commitments were made over the past two weeks, with some of the most noteworthy being pledges to reduce methane, deforestation, and funding of international fossil fuel development. 

If all pledges come to pass, it puts us on course for 1.8 degrees warming

 

Additionally, it’s worth noting the big differences between previous conferences and COP26:

  • Fossil fuels were explicitly called out as the key contributor to climate change during COP26. In previous conferences, fossil fuels never made it into the agreements. 
  • Media coverage was abundant during COP26. In the U.S., daily coverage was available via the NYTimes, Bloomberg, Washington Post,  NPR,  WSJ and FT. 
  • Despite not being formally invited, there were protests throughout the week, led by internationally known activists including Greta Thurnberg.