COP28: UN-Climate Conference in Dubai 2023

At the 28th climate negotiations in Dubai, the global community heralded the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era. In the long term, all signatory states want to phase out coal, oil, and gas. What else was decided? What were the breakthroughs? And which decisions are rather disappointing? The Germanwatch debrief reviews the conference.

The UN climate summit in Dubai concluded on 13 December after a 24-hour extension. While this year’s COP28 sends a strong signal overall, this should not distract from the weaknesses contained in the final decision, which could jeopardise implementation. The experts at Germanwatch have conducted an initial assessment of the negotiations, including the most important decisions and events. Their findings are presented here.

Published annually since 2005, the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) is an independent monitoring tool for tracking the climate protection performance of 63 countries and the EU. It aims to enhance transparency in international climate politics and enables comparison of climate protection efforts and progress made by individual countries.

Germanwatch is an association that supports the implementation of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda and related global goals on the basis of democracy and human rights. As such, it does not wish to remain silent on the terror and war taking place in the Middle East, which is, after all, not so far away from where the UN’s climate summit is taking place.

We take a look at the geopolitical situation providing the frame for the UN climate talks COP28 in Dubai and identify the most important topics for the negotiations. We also outline what we expect COP28 to deliver, in terms of decisions that mitigate climate change, build resilience and provide finance for the people who need it.

Slow-onset processes like sea level rise or desertification substantially impact people’s lives, but is still often neglected in the climate change context. Three studies conducted by Germanwatch and ENDA in 2021 have responded to these challenges. This fact sheet summarises key findings of the studies, based on recent policy developments and scientific findings. We have included key facts and figures to answer important questions, such as: What are slow-onset processes? What losses and damages do slow-onset processes cause? What approaches and measures are there to address loss and damage due to slow-onset processes?