COP stands for Conference of the Parties – the annual meeting where countries that signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) come together to negotiate global climate action. Think of it as the world’s biggest annual climate summit, where nearly 200 nations try to agree on how to collectively tackle global heating.
The “Parties” are the 198 countries that have ratified the UNFCCC, the international treaty adopted in 1992 that established the basic legal framework for climate cooperation. Each year, these countries send delegations of diplomats, scientists, negotiators and observers to a COP, rotating between the five UN regional groups to ensure global representation.
The first COP was held in Berlin in 1995. Since then, the conferences have produced some of the most significant international agreements in history – and some of the most contentious negotiations. COP is where the Kyoto Protocol (1997), the Paris Agreement (2015) and the landmark finance and fossil fuel decisions of recent years have all been hammered out.
🌿 Key COP Milestones
Not every COP produces headline-grabbing outcomes. Many are working sessions where technical details are advanced. But several have been genuinely transformative:
- 🌿 COP3 (Kyoto, 1997) – produced the Kyoto Protocol, the first legally binding treaty committing industrialised countries to specific emission reduction targets. It entered into force in 2005
- 🌿 COP15 (Copenhagen, 2009) – widely seen as a failure at the time, but established the principle that all countries (not just wealthy ones) should contribute to climate action
- 🌿 COP21 (Paris, 2015) – delivered the Paris Agreement, committing all signatories to limit warming to well below 2°C and pursue efforts to stay within 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels
- 🌿 COP26 (Glasgow, 2021) – strengthened the 1.5°C target and produced the Glasgow Climate Pact, including the first-ever COP reference to phasing down coal
- 🌿 COP28 (Dubai, 2023) – concluded the first Global Stocktake and called for transitioning away from fossil fuels, tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030
- 🌿 COP29 (Baku, 2024) – agreed a new climate finance goal of $300 billion per year by 2035 for developing countries, though this fell below the $1 trillion many experts argued was needed
- 🌿 COP30 (Belém, 2025) – the most recent COP, held in the gateway to the Amazon. Adopted the Belém Package with 29 decisions, agreed to triple adaptation finance and launched new mechanisms for just transition
🌿 The Paris Agreement and NDCs
The Paris Agreement, adopted at COP21, is the current backbone of international climate action. Its central mechanism is nationally determined contributions (NDCs) – climate plans submitted by each country every five years, setting out how they will reduce emissions and adapt to climate change.
NDCs work on a “ratchet mechanism” – each successive submission must represent a progression beyond the previous one. Countries are legally required to submit NDCs and pursue the actions within them, though they are not legally bound to achieve their targets. This design was a deliberate compromise that enabled near-universal participation (only a handful of countries have not joined).
The third round of NDCs (NDC 3.0) was due in 2025, with targets for 2035. By the time COP30 convened in November 2025, over 120 countries had submitted new or updated contributions. The EU’s NDC, submitted on behalf of all member states including Ireland, commits to a net reduction of 55% in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and an indicative 66.25% to 72.5% reduction by 2035, on the path to carbon neutrality by 2050.
The UNFCCC’s 2025 synthesis report found that the new NDCs collectively project a 17% reduction below 2019 emission levels by 2035. Progress, but still short of the 60% reduction the IPCC says is needed to stay within 1.5°C.
🌿 What Happens at a COP?
A COP typically runs for two weeks and involves several overlapping processes:
Formal negotiations take place in the “Blue Zone” – the UN-controlled conference space where country delegations negotiate texts. These discussions happen in plenary sessions, contact groups and informal consultations, often running deep into the night (and frequently overrunning the scheduled end date).
Side events and pavilions allow countries, organisations and businesses to showcase climate initiatives, launch partnerships and present research. These are often where practical commitments and announcements happen outside the formal negotiating texts.
A leaders’ summit usually takes place at the start of the conference, bringing heads of state together to set political direction. At COP30, leaders from the UK, France, Germany and Brazil attended, though notably the leaders of the three largest emitters – China, India and the US – were absent. The US did not send any official delegation to COP30 for the first time in the conference’s history.
Observer participation includes NGOs, indigenous peoples, youth groups, businesses and scientific organisations. COP30 in Belém saw the largest indigenous participation in COP history, with around 3,000 members of traditional communities taking part in proceedings.
🌿 Ireland and COP
As an EU member state, Ireland participates in COP as part of the EU delegation rather than as an independent negotiating party. The EU submits a single NDC on behalf of all its members, and the bloc negotiates as a unified position in formal sessions.
This does not mean Ireland’s domestic targets are set at EU level alone. Ireland’s Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act sets legally binding national carbon budgets, and the Climate Action Plan translates EU-wide targets into Irish-specific sectoral ceilings. Ireland’s target of a 51% reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 (against 2018 levels) and net zero by 2050 are among the most ambitious in the EU.
COP outcomes directly influence Irish policy. The COP28 agreement to triple renewable energy capacity globally by 2030 reinforces Ireland’s push toward 9 GW onshore wind, 5 GW offshore wind and 8 GW solar. The Glasgow commitment on methane reduction is directly relevant to Irish agriculture, which accounts for roughly a third of national emissions – with biogenic methane from livestock the dominant source.
The adaptation finance commitments made at COP29 and COP30 also matter for Ireland’s development cooperation programme, which has increasingly focused on climate-vulnerable countries in sub-Saharan Africa and small island developing states.
🌿 COP30 and the Belém Package
COP30, held in Bel̩m, Brazil, from 10 to 21 November 2025, was the second-largest COP in history with over 56,000 delegates registered. It marked the tenth anniversary of the Paris Agreement and was framed as a conference of implementation Рturning negotiated commitments into concrete action.
The Belém Package included 29 decisions adopted by consensus. Key outcomes included an agreement to triple adaptation finance to $120 billion per year, a new Belém Action Mechanism for just transition, and recognition of the Climate Action Agenda as a formal mechanism for driving sectoral and multi-stakeholder action. Brazil also announced the creation of ten new indigenous territories during the conference.
The most contentious issue was fossil fuel phase-out language. Oil-producing nations blocked binding commitments, though the COP30 presidency launched two roadmaps – one on forests and climate, another on transitioning away from fossil fuels – to maintain momentum between conferences.
COP31 will be hosted by Turkey, with Australia’s climate minister chairing the negotiations. COP32 is expected to be held in Africa, with Ethiopia securing the endorsement of the African Group.
🌿 Frequently Asked Questions
🌿 Do COP agreements actually work?
COP agreements are imperfect but consequential. The Paris Agreement created the framework that has driven virtually every national climate policy since 2015, including Ireland’s Climate Action Plan and carbon budgets. The tripling of renewable energy investment globally since COP21 is partly attributable to the policy signals COPs have sent. However, current NDCs still fall short of what science requires, and enforcement remains voluntary. The process advances through political pressure and incremental ratcheting rather than top-down mandates.
🌿 What is the difference between COP, CMA and CMP?
COP is the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (the original 1992 convention). CMA is the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement. CMP covers the Kyoto Protocol. In practice, these meetings run simultaneously at the same conference. When people say “COP30,” they are usually referring to the entire event, which at Belém included COP30, CMA7 and CMP20.
🌿 Why does COP always seem to overrun?
Consensus-based decision-making among nearly 200 countries with wildly different economic interests is inherently slow. Developed nations push for faster emission cuts; developing nations demand more finance and technology transfer. Oil-producing states resist fossil fuel restrictions; small island states face existential threats from rising seas. These competing interests mean that final texts are often negotiated word by word through the night, with COPs regularly running one to three days beyond their scheduled end.
🌿 How does greenwashing relate to COP?
COPs have increasingly scrutinised corporate and national greenwashing. COP26 saw the launch of integrity initiatives for net-zero pledges, and subsequent COPs have pushed for standardised reporting to prevent countries and companies from making climate commitments without credible plans to deliver them. The EU Taxonomy and related disclosure rules are partly a response to concerns raised through the COP process about the credibility of green claims.