CNBC – a part of NBC I seldom take excerpts from – provides a pretty good summary of COP28:

While much of our attention is focused simply on surviving daily and political games in DC and other world capitals commands some of what little time we have to spare, existential decisions are being made by powerful people who are deciding how the world’s now 8 billion people will face the dangers caused by climate change.

For the past couple of weeks we have heard less than minute long snippets in the news of a huge meeting in oil rich Dubai that will be one of the major decision meetings on how the earth will face climate change. Those little snippets gave us little information. 

theguardian.com online had a good summary of who won and who lost at the conference. It should come as little surprise that rich got richer and the poor got poorer.

Winners:

The oil and gas industry

The need to “transition away from fossil fuels” may finally have been recognised after three decades of climate talks, but there is no clear obligation or hard timetable to achieve this, and numerous loopholes in the form of “transition fuels” and allusions to carbon capture technologies and carbon credits.

The US and China

The world’s two biggest emitters will be breathing a sigh of relief after leaving Cop with few extra burdens to change despite growing global alarm about climate disruption. The US pledged only $20m (£15.7bn) in new finance for poor countries and remains the biggest oil producer. China can continue building coal-power plants.

Lobbyists

Industry representatives were present in record numbers in Dubai – 2,456 delegates from the oil and gas sector, 475 from the carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry, more than 100 from agribusiness and many more from elsewhere. Many will leave Dubai happy. The final text made no mention of the role of beef companies in the climate crisis, supported CCS, and a debate on regulating the carbon trading market was scuppered for now.

Losers:

Small island states

The Alliance of Small Island States, which represents those most vulnerable to sea level rise, said the agreement contained “a litany of loopholes” and represented only incremental change, which was not sufficient to keep heating below 1.5C.

Future generations and other species

The biggest victims of the climate crisis remain under-represented in decision-making processes. Despite the record heat of 2023, this is still likely to be one of the coolest years in the lives of many young people. The goal of zero global deforestation by 2030 was welcomed by conservation groups, but many ecosystems will continue to be eroded by rising temperatures.

These excerpts are just a piece of the Winners and Losers cited by the Guardian. I recommend you check out the whole article.

Remember that each and every one of us is responsible in some way for the climate. One of the most important actions you can take is to vote for climate responsible legislators, congress members and other leaders next year.

Democratic Party candidates are far superior to MAGA Party candidates in every aspect of climate policy. Voting for MAGA candidates is a choice to purposely make the problem worse. Are you so ill-informed that you are willing to condemn your children and grand-children to the ravages of a climate that has passed the tipping point.

There is a lot on the line in the next election – think long and hard about who you choose to lead.