December 7, 2023 | OPINION | By Libby Cutler
The 28th Conference of the Parties is being held in the United Arab Emirates this year, from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12. These conferences are held on an annual basis to discuss revisions and recommendations to climate policies. They have produced arguably the most important climate policies determining the trajectory of our world today.
Among other subjects, these conferences have facilitated international discussions that establish frameworks on limiting greenhouse gas emissions and working toward different types of sustainability. The successes of these meetings has been notable, though there is certainly still room for improvement.
This year, there is much debate around the United Arab Emirates electing an oil company CEO to be the president of the convention. The conference’s President, Sultan Al Jaber, is the UAE’s Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology. He is also the managing director and group CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company.
There is clear controversy in having a president who, to put it lightly, is not necessarily fighting for the cause of a greener economy and a more sustainable way of living. As the CEO of one of the largest oil companies in the world, there is inevitable backlash from the environmentalist community.
Al Jaber has made many comments on how he wants to see this conference unfold. He says that in order for there to be progress, “We must unite. We must act. And we must deliver in Dubai.” In regard to the use of fossil fuels and their detrimental impacts on the atmosphere, he says, “I need you to work together to come forward with solutions that can achieve alignment, common ground and consensus between all parties,” adding that we, “must leave no one behind.”
As the conference progresses, the controversy surrounding Al Jaber’s leadership is growing. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has made it clear that global warming needs to be limited to 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius to limit impacts on biodiversity, ecosystems, food supply, natural disasters and more. This is not to say that these effects will not occur, but limiting global warming will slow the changes. The difficulty with having an oil executive lead this climate conference is that, to limit this warming, the usage of carbon-emitting fossil fuels needs to end completely.
Al Jaber is currently facing massive backlash after making a comment in a panel before the conference that there is, “no science” behind needing to phase out fossil fuels to keep warming below a critical threshold. He has defended this comment by elaborating on the need for a just and responsible transition away from fossil fuel-based energy. Yet, there is still astounding concern around how effective this conference can be under his leadership.
Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore has been vocal about his concerns regarding Al Jaber, especially since the aforementioned comment. Gore responded quickly, adding that fossil fuels need to be phased out as quickly as possible, no wiggle room around it.
Gore also accused Al Jaber of planning to prepare “aggressive expansions” of fossil fuel productions as soon as the conference ends. Despite attempts to repair his reputation, there is mounting backlash on Al Jaber’s willingness to make changes that will keep global temperature rise below two degrees Celsius.
Although there is an overall attempt to unite companies and phase out fossil fuels responsibly, having the CEO of an oil company leading such an important conference raises many red flags.
If Al Jaber is benefitting from and making a strong living off the success of an oil company, how is he a reliable person to put forward radical climate change policies to limit greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible?
At a time when the opportunity to keep temperature rise below two degrees Celsius is slipping away, it is more crucial than ever for a successful Conference that produces new and ambitious climate policy. This is not the time to put forward more ideas from fossil fuel companies that slow the process of de-carbonization and thus continue to warm the world. This is the time to create new and innovative policies that get countries to their goals of zero net-carbon emissions.
It will be interesting to see the success of this convention, and whether personal interest in the fossil fuel industry will still allow for new progressive environmental policy to be formulated during this year’s Conference of Parties.