Ministers meet next week in the United Arab Emirates to grapple with flashpoint issues, including the future of fossil fuels and financial solidarity between rich polluters and nations most vulnerable to the devastating impacts of climate change.
Keeping the Paris goals in reach needs an enormous collective effort to slash greenhouse gas emissions this decade. That may serve to focus minds, making clear that the dangerous changes to Earth's fragile life support systems are already in motion. "The risk is that we will be sold a whole raft of declarations and side coalitions," said Lola Vallejo, of the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations.
Rich polluters are under pressure to finally meet their promise to provide $100 billion in funding by 2020 for poorer nations to prepare for climate extremes and fund the energy transition. But the biggest tussle is likely to be over weaning the world off coal, oil and gas -- the main drivers of global warming.