As has become customary with major international fora that have to do with climate change, conflicting perspectives, once again, threaten to cast shadow over the COP 28 event, which is scheduled to be held in the oil-rich Middle East Emirate, Dubai, from November 30 to December 12, this year.
The Annual COP (Conference of Parties) forum is intended to raise the level of global attention to what is widely believed to be an already existing global climate emergency resulting largely from the accelerating recovery and use of fossil fuels as one of the world’s major sources of energy. The perceived extent of that emergency is reflected in the fact that the annual COP gatherings bring together Heads of Government and high officials alike, energy and climate change experts as well as committed ‘Climate Changers’ whose assertive presence on the sidelines of the substantive gatherings play a key role not just in drawing global attention to the event and helping to galvanize action in pursuit of the ‘rolling back of climate change as well as testing the temperature of the ongoing ‘discourse’ on the issue.