World Leaders Gather in Glasgow, for COP26 Climate Summit

Top takeaways from the COP26 Climate Summit.

Top world leaders met this week for the COP26 Climate Summit to discuss climate change. Here are some takeaways from their meeting.

End and reverse deforestation and land degradation by 2030

According to CNN, the nations taking part are Canada, Russia, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, all of which have significant tracts of forest. Brazil in particular has come under criticism for allowing an increase in the deforestation of the Amazon in recent years. The US and China will also be party to the agreement.

Biden endorses global methane reduction deal

According to NBC, U.S. President Joe Biden has said one of the most important things the world can do is reduce methane emissions as quickly as possible. “It’s one of the most potent greenhouse gases there is,” he told COP26 attendees at the launch of the Global Methane Pledge, a pact to cut methane emissions by 30% by the end of the decade. “It amounts to about half the warming we’re experiencing today.”

Biden said signatories to the pact “could probably go beyond” the pledge’s 30% reduction target. “Today [almost] 100 countries are signing on to the pledge, accounting for half of global methane emissions or 70% of global GDP,” he said. “It’s going to make a huge difference, not just when it comes to fighting climate change — it’s going to improve health, improve food supply and boost economies.”

India Promises to be Net-Zero

According to CNN, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made headlines on Monday by announcing a net-zero emissions target, pledging India will become carbon neutral by 2070. While it was a major announcement, as India had not yet put a date on its net-zero ambition, the 2070 target is a decade later than China’s, and two decades after the world as a whole needs to achieve net-zero emissions in order to avoid temperatures from rising beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times.