Leicester delegation to bring environmental research insights to the heart of COP29
Decisions made at the upcoming COP29 will benefit from research expertise from University of Leicester, as a delegation of academics travels to the world’s most important climate and sustainability event next week.
COP29 is the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 29th Conference of the Parties and will take place in Baku, Azerbaijan from 11 - 22 November 2024.
This year, the University of Leicester has arranged for academics to contribute to the Blue Zone, the formal conference and negotiation space managed by the UNFCCC. All the official sessions, meetings, side events and press conferences held during COP29 will take place in the Blue Zone. Only UNFCCC-accredited participants, including Party delegations, Heads of State, admitted observers and the accredited press can enter the Blue Zone.
Professor Heiko Balzter, Director of the Institute for Environmental Futures, is attending the event on behalf of the University of Leicester and National Centre for Earth Observation. Professor Balzter’s technical expertise on satellite earth observation of global forests – measuring how much carbon is stored in forests and how much carbon they lose and gain – is a crucial function. He has developed a forest alert system from space, which has been adopted by the Government of Kenya and has led to significant successes, with statistics showing that illegal deforestation in one County on the Kenyan coast has come almost to a standstill. He also co-leads the Land Use for Net Zero, Nature and People (LUNZ) Hub in the UK, where they are translating evidence from research into policy.
Joining him in the Blue Zone will be Professor Pat Heslop-Harrison from the Department of Genetics, Genomics and Cancer Sciences. With research interests encompassing genomics and the evolution of plants and animals, he is particularly interested in sustainability objectives for agriculture and the food chain that will reduce and mitigate climate change, and enhance conservation of biodiversity or protection of the natural environment, all the while increasing global food security.
Dr Benjamin Coles from the School of Geography, Geology and Environment will attend as part of an EU/state-funded German delegation focused on transition economies, also working in the Blue Zone. As a member of the Institute of Environmental Futures, Dr Coles is presenting a paper on why energy transitions as currently organised - funded through finance capital (and capitalism) - will not lead to an equitable or ‘just’ transition without significant State intervention. The consequences of not pursuing a just transition will likely exacerbate social and ecological inequality, and could lead to some disastrous outcomes.
Dr Noel Clancy, who works on the AI4NetZero project led by Professor Heiko Balzter, is also attending in person. His interests are in modelling Earth System processes, especially modelling greenhouse gas emissions from croplands. Accurately model predictions of emissions from croplands are of major importance if the UK is to meet its net zero targets on cropland emissions. At COP29, Dr Clancy intends to contribute to discussions about what future actions are required to reduce cropland emissions and more generally greenhouse gas emissions globally.
And since 2022, Dr Tim Neff from the School of Media, Communication and Sociology has attended COPs and written on them for the International Institute for Sustainable Development's (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin. He researches climate and environmental journalism, looking at how different revenue streams, ownership structures, and media policies facilitate substantial journalism that helps the public engage with climate change.
This year, Dr Neff will spend most of his time in the Blue Zone’s pavilion area, attending and reporting on side events, which often involve panel discussions hosted by UN agencies, national governments, and NGOs. He will also be talking with journalists and others who are involved in the type of news coverage that he researches.
Alongside those attending COP29 in person, the University also has been granted access for a number of academics to attend virtually, including Professor John Remedios, Director of the National Centre for Earth Observation and several members of the University’s Institute for Environmental Futures will attending sessions online. In addition, Dr Cristina Fona, Sustainability Director of the College of Business, will take part in online sessions on sustainable education, climate finance and sustainable tourism. Dr Fona is also co-lead of the Leicestershire Collaboration to Achieve Net Zero (LCAN), a £2.56M UK Research and Innovation-funded project aimed at accelerating small medium enterprises transition towards net zero, and will be looking for inspiration on effective local, community-level climate solutions that could positively contribute to LCAN and the region.
Quotes from University of Leicester attendees:
Professor Heiko Balzter, Director of the Institute for Environmental Futures, said: “It is becoming increasingly apparent that we will not meet the 1.5C goal set in the Paris Agreement. However, we should still aim to stay as close to the 1.5C goal as possible. I argue that we should learn from this failure and step up international efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.7C or 1.8C above pre-industrial levels, depending on what is achievable.
“My hope is that by COP30 we will commit to sufficient emission reductions worldwide to get us back on track towards a net zero future.”
Professor Pat Heslop-Harrison, Department of Genetics, Genomics and Cancer Sciences, said: “Arguably, UNFCCC-COP29 is the most important global meeting of any sort in the world this year, since it is where the big decisions and announcements on climate change mitigation are taken. It is great that the University of Leicester is one of the organizations who can nominate attendees and contribute to the discussions, along with the Heads of State who ratify actions, many NGOs/charitable organizations and the media, as well as academics.
“At COP29, the work, discussions, and reports we will contribute to will help the COP29 aims to gain clarity on the next steps to be taken globally, the indicators to be monitored, and the progress towards defined outcomes. The discussions will involve both national government delegations, and organizations we have worked with, and the students, post-docs and academics in Leicester.”
Dr Benjamin Coles from the School of Geography, Geology and Environment said: “My rationale for attending COP this year is to raise awareness of the contradictions associated with Net-Zero, and to advocate for a more geographically ‘aware’ set of economic and social policies to facilitate a just transition.”
Dr Tim Neff from the School of Media Communications and Sociology said: “My attendance at COPs provides first-hand knowledge of climate policymaking, activism, and news coverage, which I bring into my teaching and research. This year's COP is seen as crucial for unlocking the finance needed to help transition countries to green economies and for countries to demonstrate stepped up ambitions for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change.”
Dr Cristina Fona from the College of Business said: “Given the focus on climate finance for COP29, I am hoping to see governments sending a clearer policy signal to engage the private sector, particularly through the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCGQ) and ambitious nationally determined contribution plans (NDCs). There are also heightened expectations around adaptation and mitigation plans which might create opportunities for both public and private sectors. As countries reassess their climate commitments, COP29 presents a prime opportunity for nations to showcase leadership through more ambitious climate plans.”