Advocates praise unprecedented COP28 deal but warn of ticking clock

The COP28 climate summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, broke new ground with an agreement to transition away from fossil fuels, the first such pact in the summit’s three-decade history. Climate advocates hailed the historic milestone and said continual pressure is needed to address the impacts of climate change.

The nonbinding pledge calls for nations to “transition away” from the use of fossil fuels, a stronger commitment than the “phase down” language that appeared in prior agreements. The “transition” language is itself a slight downgrade from the stronger “phase out” agreement some countries called for earlier in the summit.

Sierra Club President Ben Jealous praised the agreement, particularly in the context of a summit hosted by a major oil producer.

“At a COP hosted by a petro-state, presided over by a literal oil executive, with fossil fuel billionaires and their lobbyists crowding the halls in record numbers, the world still charted a way forward,” Jealous said in a statement.

“The progress made in the face of undue influence that created the climate crisis must not end in Dubai. Under President Biden’s leadership, the United States has once again engaged on global climate action, and it is imperative that we lead by example.”

World Conservation Society President and CEO Monica Medina said in a statement that while the consensus is unprecedented, it may be insufficient to transition off of fossil fuels in time to avoid the threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming.

“This consensus may mark the beginning of the end of the road for fossil fuels. But we are gravely concerned that it does not take us far enough or fast enough to adequately address the climate crisis. We cannot and must not let up now,” Medina said.

“The world must accelerate a just transition away from fossil fuels without any further delay — pedal to the metal.”

Other quarters were less optimistic about the text, particularly Global Witness, a nongovernmental organization that works to reduce natural resources-related conflict.

“This agreement sends a signal to those thousands of lobbyists who gathered at COP — there is a long and profitable future for their destructive businesses, regardless of what the science tells us,” Global Witness CEO Mike Davis said in a statement.  

“Serious climate action means no loopholes, no reliance on unproven technology and an immediate phaseout, with massive financial support for the transition from the richest countries and from big polluters.”