The Role and Challenges of COP29

The conference aims to facilitate international agreements to mitigate climate change, with notable past achievements like the Paris Agreement in 2015, which sought to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. However, the credibility of COP29 is challenged by the absence of key leaders, including the U.S. President-elect, Donald Trump, who has publicly dismissed climate change as a 'hoax' and threatens to withdraw the U.S. from international agreements. This sets a precarious stage, as the U.S. historically contributes significantly to climate discussions. The atmosphere surrounding the conference is less optimistic, with concerns that failure to reach consensus on urgent climate finance may leave developing nations at a disadvantage in combating climate effects.