From COP21 to COP22 : it’s time to deliver

From 7th November to 18th November, we will have the first meeting of the countries who decided to contain climate change one year ago in Paris. 195 countries that have committed themselves to develop a low-carbon world.

We have to say it again: the Paris agreement was a huge success. Bringing together 195 parties with sometimes as many different views on climate change was no easy task. The famous quote of Mandela is relevant to describe how we felt then: “it always seems impossible until it’s done”.

Nevertheless, in Marrakesh begins another hard work: delivering our commitments and transform our society into a low-carbon economy, able to contain global warming under 1.5 degree by the end of the century. To define this roadmap is one of the key challenges we will have to face in COP22.

The EU has been a leader in the negotiations to reach an agreement in Paris. Nevertheless, today, is member states have been lagging behind the process of ratification. It’s a very non positive signal for our commitment to a paradigmatic shift of our economy, more ecofriendly, geared towards a new economy and a new and powerful kind of growth.

Obviously, as I wrote it down in my report on COP21 adopted last year by the European parliament, the EU must be a leader and a role-model in the fight against climate change. It means we have to redesign our electricity market, this is mostly what we are discussing in this review. But overall, to be a role-model in the wake of COP21 can also be made through a review of our European commitment to mitigate our emissions of greenhouse gases. To transform our electricity market goes hand in hand with a stronger environmental policy, these are two sides of the same medal.