Bewildered by the talks? Try viewing them as a struggle among three blocs of countries, companies and protest movements
The most important UN climate change talks since the 2015 Paris Agreement are upon us, with more than 120 world leaders are arriving in Glasgow for Cop26. The question now is, amid all the big talk, will it make a difference?
Given that Cop1 was held in 1995 and carbon dioxide emissions are now 14 billion tonnes a year higher than back then, we can be forgiven for thinking Cop26 is all a charade. But this time it is different, because it is a battle not only over reducing carbon emissions, but also over the rules of a new phase of capitalism that will affect us all.
Simon Lewis is professor of global change science at University College London and University of Leeds