COP26: Ditching coal, broken promises, and more highlights from Day Four

Glasgow, UK - COP26 had another day of minor victories, but despite claims that "coal is no longer king" and that the world is on track for "only" 1.8 degrees of warming, there's some justified skepticism that everyone will really stick to their climate goals.

Pikachus joined activists from the No Coal Japan coalition, at Pacific Quay opposite the Glasgow COP26 campus, to demand Japan stop financing overseas coal projects and phase out domestic coal by 2030.
Pikachus joined activists from the No Coal Japan coalition, at Pacific Quay opposite the Glasgow COP26 campus, to demand Japan stop financing overseas coal projects and phase out domestic coal by 2030.  © IMAGO / ZUMA Press

On November 4, over 40 countries said they would phase out coal use. Crucially though, China and India, who burn two thirds of the world's coal, were not among them.

The US also pledged to cut coal investments, but only its overseas spending, not domestic coal use or funding.

Meanwhile, protesters in Pikachu costumes zeroed in on Japan's overseas investment in coal and demanded that it end domestic coal use by 2030.

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The new pledges and other goals announced at COP26 would lead to warming of 1.8 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

This is an improvement on the 2.7 degrees of global warming we were heading towards a day before. However, global pledges haven't always meant action, as shown in the insufficient funding for poorer nations already struggling with the effects of climate change.

For many African nations, the worst is already here: droughts, floods, and famine. Still, rich nations' promises to provide $100 billion per year in climate funding haven't been kept.

On Thursday, the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change asked for richer countries to support harder-hit developing nations with $1.3 trillion per year starting in 2025, which would help African countries deal with the effects of climate change and transition to renewable energy without tanking their economies.

The good news from the fourth day of the climate conference is that new pledges and discussions are headed in the right direction, but for Africa the promises need to turn into action.

Cover photo: IMAGO / NurPhoto

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