Amr Alfiky/Reuters
Negotiators from almost 200 countries at the COP28 climate summit entered into an agreement Wednesday to start moving away from the use of fossil fuels, the first time nations have explicitly called to drop energy sources like oil, coal, and gas in order to avoid the most severe effects of global heating.
The pact was sealed in Dubai after two weeks of lengthy talks about the language of the deal, with countries divided on how far the agreement should go. COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber hailed the “historic” accord but said its success would ultimately be in its implementation around the world.
“We are what we do, not what we say,” he said at the summit. “We must take the steps necessary to turn this agreement into tangible actions.” While some critics of the deal say it does not go far enough, others celebrated the fact that, for the first time in the 28 years that nations have assembled to address climate change, an agreement has been approved that clearly calls for action on fossil fuels.