Voices from UN climate talks. A recap through quotes

Hello and welcome to the AP Climate Watch newsletter. I am Peter Prengaman, global climate and environment news director. I am with colleagues in Dubai, where the annual climate negotiations, #COP28, are about to wrap up. In today’s newsletter, I’m going to experiment with using quotes to tell the story since the talks began Nov. 30. Please let me know if you like it.

“These allegations are false, not true, incorrect and not accurate,” said COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber on Nov. 30.

On the first day of the summit, al-Jaber denied a BBC News report that said the oil rich United Arab Emirates planned to make deals for oil and renewable energies during the negotiations. Al-Jaber runs the UAE’s national oil company and a renewable energy firm. Leading up to the talks, many environmentalists and even politicians around the world, argued that somebody from the oil industry, which is responsible for much of the pollution that causes climate change, shouldn’t be overseeing a climate summit.

“At the start of COP27 in Egypt last year, many people said it wouldn’t be agreed, let alone created in 12 months,” said Mohamed Adow, director of climate think tank Power Shift Africa, on Nov. 30.

Adow was referring to a fund to help poor countries being hammered by climate change. The fund was approved on the first day of the summit. While there are many questions long term—namely how much will rich countries contribute?—its approval underscored that the world community believes developed nations, which are most responsible for climate change, have a moral imperative to help countries being severely impacted.  

“We are here all together, all the world together, to combat climate change and really, we're negotiating for what? We're negotiating for what in the middle of a genocide?” said Hadeel Ikhmais, a climate change expert with the Palestinian Authority, on Dec. 1.

Since the climate talks began, the war between Israel and Hamas has cast a long shadow over the event. Many of the small protests have been in support of Palestinians.

The pledge “could be the single most impactful day of announcements from any COP in my 30 years at the Environmental Defense Fund,” said EDF President Fred Krupp on Dec. 2.

Fifty oil and gas companies said they would sharply reduce emissions of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, across their operations by 2030. While celebrated by some climate experts, others noted that the pledge was voluntary, so not enforceable, and argued that it doesn’t move the world toward a phase out of fossil fuels.

“Well, I mean, it’s cheesy doing CPR on the Earth,” said Dr. Joe Vipond, an emergency room physician from Alberta, Canada, who took part in demonstration on Dec. 3. “We’re kind of in a lot of trouble right now," he added, so he was willing to do "anything we can do to bring attention to this issue.”

For the first time in its nearly 30 years, the climate talks included health as one of its thematic days. As temperatures have crept up and extreme weather events have intensified, researchers are finding links between climate change and negative impacts on human health, including heat stroke, breathing problems and infectious diseases.

"Please, help me, show me for a phase-out of fossil fuel that will allow for sustainable socio-economic development, unless you want to take the world back into caves,” al-Jaber was recorded as saying during a video conference.

The comments, which happened in November but surfaced Dec. 4, had the effect of a thunderclap. For environmentalists who opposed al-Jaber being COP28 president, it confirmed their narrative that an oil executive had no interest in leading the world toward less fossil fuel use. Al-Jaber later said he had been taken out of context.

“The last half year has truly been shocking. Scientists are running out of adjectives to describe this,” said Copernicus Deputy Director Samantha Burgess, when scientists said on Dec. 6 that November had been the sixth month in a row of record temperatures.

Yet one more heat record was a reminder of how quickly the Earth is warming. Put another way, the discussions at COP28 have real implications as the world combats climate change.

“We have to say how loud we’re going to be, what’s going to be written on the banners,” said Lise Masson from Friends of the Earth International during a Dec. 9 protest. “We’re not allowed to name countries and corporations. So it’s really a very sanitized space.”

While protests have been permitted, there are so many restrictions that demonstrators say they have struggled to be heard. 

“They’re scared. I think they’re worried,” said former Ireland President Mary Robinson on Dec. 9.

Robinson was speaking about the interests of oil and gas when it was reported that OPEC, the oil cartel, had written to member countries asking that they reject any agreement around phasing out fossil fuels.

“We will not go silently to our watery graves,” said Marshall Islands chief delegate and natural resources minister Samuel Silk on Dec. 11. “We will not accept an outcome that will lead to devastation for our country, and for millions if not billions of the most vulnerable people and communities.”

Silk was talking about a draft agreement that critics said had watered down language on fossil fuels. The talks were scheduled to end Dec. 12, but negotiations often go over.

Read the stories:

• Earth is running a fever. And UN climate talks are focusing on the contagious effect on human health

• At COP28 meeting, oil companies pledge to combat methane. Environmentalists call it a “smokescreen”

• The resumption of the Israel-Hamas war casts long shadow over Dubai’s COP28 climate talks

• On 1st day, UN climate conference sets up fund for countries hit by disasters like flood and drought

• Protests at UN climate talks, from cease-fire calls to detainees, see ‘shocking level of censorship’

• A leaked OPEC letter shows the oil cartel’s worry over the COP28 climate talks, environmentalists say

• As COP28 nears finish, critics say proposal ‘doesn’t even come close’ to what’s needed on climate

• Check out all our climate coverage here

Here’s what else you need to know

❓Carbon capture keeps coming up in discussions at #COP28. What is it? Is it a real climate solution? Read more.

🌊 Go under the ocean—literally—to see efforts to restore kelp off the coast of  California. Read more.

🏜 The Aral Sea is one of the worst ecological disasters in history. These fishermen now have boats that are literally grounded on ground. Read more.

One big number:

1.75 degrees Celsius (3.15 degrees Fahrenheit)

The amount of average global temperature increase in November compared to the pre-industrial times. The spike is concerning, as scientists have repeatedly said the world must keep temperature increase below 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid devastating impacts from climate change.

Thank you for reading this newsletter. We’ll be back next week. For questions, suggestions or ideas please email ClimateWatch@ap.org

This newsletter was written by Peter Prengaman, global news director for climate and environment, and produced by Climate engagement manager Natalia Gutiérrez.

➡️ Want more from the AP? Sign up for our other newsletters.