World leaders are convening in Baku, Azerbaijan, for the annual UN Climate Change Conference, or the twenty-ninth Conference of Parties (COP29). The conference closes out another year of record-breaking climate events: devastating storms, widespread floods, and extreme heat. The urgency for the world’s leaders to make progress on reducing emissions has never been higher, but many obstacles remain.

What to Expect at the COP29 Summit in Baku

Alice C. Hill and Priyanka Mahat

The 2024 summit in Azerbaijan comes amid fresh reports showing that global warming levels are accelerating, bringing more intense climate-related disasters and an increased demand for funding to mitigate and protect communities from the effects of climate change. Read the expert opinion

Watch What Countries Do, Not What They Say

David M. Hart

The American election is far from the determining factor in the global fight against climate change. World governments should focus on rapidly driving down the costs of clean energy, particularly in the power, transportation, and industrial sectors, to move the needle. Read expert insights on prospects for climate diplomacy

How the Caribbean Is Building Climate Resilience

Diana Roy

Small island nations in the Caribbean are among the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, including rising sea levels, coastal erosion, and stronger and more frequent storms. Learn how the region is adapting

Understanding the Global Push for Climate Finance

Clara Fong

Countries will collectively need to spend trillions of dollars to reach their decarbonization goals and protect the most vulnerable nations from climate disasters, but experts say that current funding levels lag behind what’s required to stave off and adapt to the worst effects of climate change. Read more about the challenges

From CFR Education: How Climate Change Can Worsen

CFR Education

Climate change can amplify itself through feedback loops and trigger catastrophic “tipping points” that can have widespread and often irreversible consequences. Learn how it can lead to disastrous results

Also from CFR Education: Explore climate change resources for educators that focus on the disproportionality of effects, regulatory challenges, mitigation efforts, and more.

Council on Foreign Relations

58 East 68th Street, New York, NY 10065

1777 F Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006

Manage Your Email Preferences

View in Browser