COP26 has officially started in Glasgow.
The opening ceremony began with a minute’s silence for victims of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The COP presidency was then ceremonially handed over from Carolina Schmidt, Chile’s Minister of the Environment and the COP25 president, to Alok Sharma, a British Member of Parliament and the President of COP26.
The presidency of COP rotates among the five regional groups, designated as Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Western Europe and Other.
The “Other” states group includes Australia, Canada, Iceland, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and the United States of America.
In his opening speech, Sharma struck an optimistic note, saying: “We know what we need to do. Because six years ago in Paris, we agreed our shared goal. We said we will protect people and nature from the effects of climate change.”
“We can move the negotiations forward or we can move on increasing ambitions. So let’s come together these two weeks and ensure that what Paris promised Glasgow delivers,” Sharma said.
Schmidt used her outgoing speech to send a message to the G20 leaders, most of whom are in Rome at the G20 summit.
“The success of COP26 will be assessed in three areas: (emission cutting) ambitions, finance and rules … I would like to appeal to the leaders of G20, I urge you to fulfil your commitments,” Schmidt said.