Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Time for action: On COP-28 climate meeting in Dubai

Time for action: On COP-28 climate meeting in Dubai

COP-28 must compel its signatories (हस्ताक्षरकर्ता) to take definitive (निश्चित, अंतिम) action

The next fortnight (a period of two weeks/fourteen days continuously) will see world leaders, industrialists, activists (कार्यकर्ता), and indigenous (स्वदेशी) peoples converge (meet, join, come together) at the 28th edition (संस्करण) of the Conference of the Parties (COP) (The Conference of Parties (COP) is the apex decision-making body of the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC was formed in 1994 to stabilize the greenhouse gas emissions and to protect the earth from the threat of climate change. COP members have been meeting every year since the year 1995. As of 2022, the number of member countries in the UNFCCC has reached 198. The first conference (COP1) was held in 1995 in Berlin. The 27th session (COP27) was held in 2022 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt). This annual affair (event, happening, occurrence, episode, phenomenon) is an attempt to inch ahead (move ahead very slowly and gradually) on getting at least 190 countries, all members of the United Nations climate framework, to act on (obey, follow, act in accordance with, comply with, adhere to, abide by, conform to) weaning their economies off fossil fuels (जीवाश्म ईंधन). The current goal is to make good on a collective (सामूहिक) commitment made by countries in Paris, in 2015, to strive (try, try hard, aim, aspire, seek, struggle, make every effort) to hold (पकड़ना) global temperatures to no higher than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels (पूर्व-औद्योगिक) by the end of the century and definitely below 2°C. Despite countries unanimously (सर्वसम्मति से) agreeing that humanity (humankind, the human race, human beings, humans, people) will collectively (सामूहिक रूप से) bear (endure, tolerate, put up, withstand, suffer, undergo, experience, weather, go through) a huge price (कीमत) if these limits are breached (contravene, offend, break, violate, fail to comply with, disobey, defy, encroach on, trespass on, infringe on, obtrude on), and nearly all major economies framing grand national plans to show how they are doing ‘their bit’, the science says that instead of being cut 8% annually, emissions (Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere; Carbon dioxide is also a greenhouse gas produced as a byproduct of human activities. Burning fossil fuels—coal, oil, and natural gas—is the number one source of global CO2 emissions) have grown 1.2% from 2021-22. At this rate, the world will warm 2.5-3°C by the end of the century. There have already been 86 instances just this year of global temperatures breaching the dreaded (cautioned, forewarned, predicted, apprehended; frightening, terrible, frightful, terrifying, disastrous) 1.5°C threshold (it is an amount, level, or limit of something. Once the threshold is reached, something else happens or changes; lower limit, starting point, point of entry).

In the nearly three decades (दशक) of COP meetings, the major economies have agreed on three broad principles. Countries that rapidly industrialised (औद्योगिक) in the 20th century have disproportionately (inordinately, excessively, immoderately, unduly, unreasonably, unjustifiably) emitted more carbon than their ‘fair share (a reasonable amount/portion)’ given (considering, taking into account, bearing in mind) the population sustained (continuing for a long time; continued for an extended period). Economic growth premised on (base something on) fossil fuel consumption, while cheaper per unit than renewable energy (green/clean energy; energy generated from natural resources (such as water, wind & solar energy)), spells (cause, lead to, result in, bring about, point to; signify, signal, augur, herald, promise) disaster. And developing countries and those with minimal industrial infrastructure (the basic physical or organisational structure or framework that a country or organization needs in order to function properly. For a whole nation, it includes all the physical systems such as buildings, roads & railways networks, utilities, etc) today must be compensated (make amends, make restitution, make reparation, make recompense) for adopting (agree to, accept, embrace, assume, acquire) costlier, but cleaner (environment-friendly), non-fossil fuel sources for growing their economies. There is also a consensus (an idea or opinion that is shared by all the people in a group, agreement, concurrence) that the countries already weathering (survive, withstand, endure, come through, live through) climate disasters must be compensated and also paid to bolster (strengthen, support, make stronger, reinforce, buttress) their infrastructure. However, getting all countries to actually act on these principles is onerous (difficult, tough, troublesome, stressful, burdensome) given the mutual suspicion (mistrust, distrust, doubt, qualm, mistrust, misgiving, apprehension, lack of faith/confidence/trust), the spirit of de-globalisation (opposite of globalization. A process of reversing or decreasing interdependence and integration among the countries), and the fear of political reprisal (retaliation, counterattack, counterstroke; revenge, vengeance, retribution, recrimination, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, tit for tat) that heads of governments face within their constituencies (a group of people with shared political opinions). These themes are expected to play out (happen, occur arise, transpire, come about, take place) this year too. Two major issues are expected to take the stage (attract attention onto oneself; to become the center of attention): the conclusion of the Global Stocktake (In 2015, when countries committed in Paris to keep global temperatures from rising beyond 2 degrees Celsius by the end of the century and “as far as possible” below 1.5 degrees Celsius, they also agreed to periodically review, or take stock of efforts, made by individual countries in containing greenhouse gases and transitioning their fossil-fuel dependent energy systems to renewable sources. This larger exercise called the ‘global stocktake,’ is expected to take place once in five years. It’s like taking inventory; countries laying out what they have so far done to achieve commitments laid out in the Paris Agreement) and the operationalisation (the process of causing something into operation) of the Loss and Damage (At the 19th Conference of the Parties (COP 19) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Warsaw, Poland, in 2013, representatives of member countries formally agreed to establish the Loss and Damage (L&D) fund. It was being created to provide financial and technical assistance to economically developing nations that were incurring Loss and Damage (L&D) due to climate change) Fund. However, there is no clarity on the size of the fund and the individual contributions by countries. While COPs, by nature (naturally, of course, obviously, clearly, needless to say, as may be expected), are self-congratulatory (self-satisfied, self-admired, self–glorifying, self-promoting, overly complacent, boastful, bombastic) when all they deliver (provide, implement, carry out) are agreements with elaborate (complicated, detailed, intricate, complex) caveats, COP28 must strive to live up to (satisfy, fulfil, achieve, meet) its declared (formally asserted/announced) goal of being a conclave (meeting, conference, summit (international meeting/conference of heads of state/government)) that compels its signatories to take definitive action.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.signatory (noun)

Hindi Meaning - हस्ताक्षरकर्ता
English Meaning - the person who signed an official document/agreement. (in this context, it is a country that signs an agreement).

2.definitive (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - निश्चित, अंतिम
English Meaning - definite, decisive, final, conclusive, categorical.

3.activist (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - कार्यकर्ता
English Meaning - a person who supports a political change or cause; (or societal change/cause).

4.indigenous (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - स्वदेशी
English Meaning - relating to a member of the original group of people living in a place; native, original, aboriginal, ancient, primeval.

5.edition (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संस्करण
English Meaning - a particular instance of a regular programme; version.

6.fossil fuel (noun)

Hindi Meaning - जीवाश्म ईंधन
English Meaning - non renewable resources (or fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas are formed from the buried/deposited organic materials).

7.collective (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - सामूहिक
English Meaning - common, shared, joint, combined.

8.hold (verb)

Hindi Meaning - पकड़ना
English Meaning - cause to stay at a certain value/level; remain, stay, keep up, continue without changing.

9.pre-industrial level (noun)

Hindi Meaning - पूर्व-औद्योगिक
English Meaning - In principle, ‘pre-industrial levels’ could refer to any period of time before the start of the industrial revolution. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C uses the reference period 1850–1900 to represent pre-industrial temperature.

10.unanimously (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - सर्वसम्मति से
English Meaning - without opposition, agreed to (by everyone involved).

11.collectively (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - सामूहिक रूप से
English Meaning - as a group, as a whole; generally.

12.price (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कीमत
English Meaning - consequence, result, cost, lost, sacrifice, disadvantage, suffering, affliction.

13.carbon emission (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कार्बन उत्सर्जन
English Meaning - the release of carbon into the atmosphere.

14.decade (noun)

Hindi Meaning - दशक
English Meaning - a period of ten years.

15.industrialised (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - औद्योगिक
English Meaning - (of a country or region) developed.

16.Conference of the Parties (COP) (noun)

English Meaning - The Conference of Parties (COP) is the apex decision-making body of the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC was formed in 1994 to stabilize the greenhouse gas emissions and to protect the earth from the threat of climate change. COP members have been meeting every year since the year 1995. As of 2022, the number of member countries in the UNFCCC has reached 198. The first conference (COP1) was held in 1995 in Berlin. The 27th session (COP27) was held in 2022 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

17.COP-28 (noun)

English Meaning - The 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 28) to the UNFCCC will convene from 30 November to 12 December 2023. It will take place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

18.fortnight (noun)

English Meaning - a period of two weeks/fourteen days continuously.

19.converge (verb)

English Meaning - meet, join, come together.

20.affair (noun)

English Meaning - event, happening, occurrence, episode, phenomenon.

21.inch ahead (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - move ahead very slowly and gradually.

22.The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (noun)

English Meaning - The UNFCCC entered into force on 21 March 1994. Today, it has near-universal membership. The 197 countries that have ratified the Convention are called Parties to the Convention. Preventing “dangerous” human interference with the climate system is the ultimate aim of the UNFCCC.

23.act on (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - obey, follow, act in accordance with, comply with, adhere to, abide by, conform to.

24.wean off (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to make someone accept or adjust his/her habit by gradually stop using/depending on something.

25.Paris Agreement/Accord (noun)

English Meaning - The Paris Agreement builds upon the Convention (agreement) and for the first time brings all nations into a common cause to undertake ambitious efforts to combat climate change and adapt to its effects, with enhanced support to assist developing countries to do so. The Paris Agreement central aim is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

26.make good on something (phrase)

English Meaning - to do what you say, keep a promise, fulfill an obligation/commitment.

27.strive (verb)

English Meaning - try, try hard, aim, aspire, seek, struggle, make every effort.

28.humanity (noun)

English Meaning - humankind, the human race, human beings, humans, people.

29.bear (verb)

English Meaning - endure, tolerate, put up, withstand, suffer, undergo, experience, weather, go through.

30.breach (verb)

English Meaning - contravene, offend, break, violate, fail to comply with, disobey, defy, encroach on, trespass on, infringe on, obtrude on.

31.bit (noun)

English Meaning - a small part of something.

32.(carbon) emissions (noun)

English Meaning - Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere; Carbon dioxide is also a greenhouse gas produced as a byproduct of human activities. Burning fossil fuels—coal, oil, and natural gas—is the number one source of global CO2 emissions.

33.dreaded (adjective)

English Meaning - cautioned, forewarned, predicted, apprehended; frightening, terrible, frightful, terrifying, disastrous.

34.threshold (noun)

English Meaning - it is an amount, level, or limit of something. Once the threshold is reached, something else happens or changes; lower limit, starting point, point of entry.

35.broad (adjective)

English Meaning - comprehensive, extensive, wide, general, wide-ranging, multidisciplinary.

36.disproportionately (adverb)

English Meaning - inordinately, excessively, immoderately, unduly, unreasonably, unjustifiably.

37.fair share (noun)

English Meaning - a reasonable amount/portion.

38.given (preposition)

English Meaning - considering, taking into account, bearing in mind.

39.sustained (adjective)

English Meaning - continuing for a long time; continued for an extended period.

40.premise on (verb)

English Meaning - base something on.

41.renewable energy (noun)

English Meaning - green/clean energy; energy generated from natural resources (such as water, wind & solar energy).

42.spell (verb)

English Meaning - cause, lead to, result in, bring about, point to; signify, signal, augur, herald, promise.

43.infrastructure (noun)

English Meaning - the basic physical or organisational structure or framework that a country or organization needs in order to function properly. For a whole nation, it includes all the physical systems such as buildings, roads & railways networks, utilities, etc.

44.compensate (verb)

English Meaning - make amends, make restitution, make reparation, make recompense.

45.adopt (verb)

English Meaning - agree to, accept, embrace, assume, acquire.

46.cleaner (comparative adjective)

English Meaning - environment-friendly.

47.consensus (noun)

English Meaning - an idea or opinion that is shared by all the people in a group, agreement, concurrence.

48.weather (verb)

English Meaning - survive, withstand, endure, come through, live through.

49.bolster (verb)

English Meaning - strengthen, support, make stronger, reinforce, buttress.

50.onerous (adjective)

English Meaning - difficult, tough, troublesome, stressful, burdensome.

51.suspicion (noun)

English Meaning - mistrust, distrust, doubt, qualm, mistrust, misgiving, apprehension, lack of faith/confidence/trust.

52.de-globalisation (noun)

English Meaning - opposite of globalization. A process of reversing or decreasing interdependence and integration among the countries.

53.globalisation (noun)

English Meaning - It refers to the increasing integration of economies around the world, particularly through the movement of goods, services, and capital across borders. The term sometimes also refers to the movement of people (labour) and knowledge (technology) across international borders. There are also broader cultural, political, and environmental dimensions of globalization.

54.reprisal (noun)

English Meaning - retaliation, counterattack, counterstroke; revenge, vengeance, retribution, recrimination, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, tit for tat.

55.constituency (noun)

English Meaning - a group of people with shared political opinions.

56.play out (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - happen, occur arise, transpire, come about, take place.

57.take the stage (phrase)

English Meaning - attract attention onto oneself; to become the center of attention.

58.Global Stocktake (noun)

English Meaning - In 2015, when countries committed in Paris to keep global temperatures from rising beyond 2 degrees Celsius by the end of the century and “as far as possible” below 1.5 degrees Celsius, they also agreed to periodically review, or take stock of efforts, made by individual countries in containing greenhouse gases and transitioning their fossil-fuel dependent energy systems to renewable sources. This larger exercise called the ‘global stocktake,’ is expected to take place once in five years. It’s like taking inventory; countries laying out what they have so far done to achieve commitments laid out in the Paris Agreement.

59.stocktake (verb)

English Meaning - review, assess, analyze (one’s situation).

60.operationalisation (noun)

English Meaning - the process of causing something into operation.

61.Loss and Damage (L&D) Fund (noun)

English Meaning - At the 19th Conference of the Parties (COP 19) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Warsaw, Poland, in 2013, representatives of member countries formally agreed to establish the Loss and Damage (L&D) fund. It was being created to provide financial and technical assistance to economically developing nations that were incurring Loss and Damage (L&D) due to climate change.

62.by nature (phrase)

English Meaning - naturally, of course, obviously, clearly, needless to say, as may be expected.

63.self-congratulatory (adjective)

English Meaning - self-satisfied, self-admired, self–glorifying, self-promoting, overly complacent, boastful, bombastic.

64.deliver (verb)

English Meaning - provide, implement, carry out.

65.elaborate (adjective)

English Meaning - complicated, detailed, intricate, complex.

66.caveat (noun)

English Meaning - warning/caution of provision, condition, clause.

67.live up to (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - satisfy, fulfil, achieve, meet.