UN climate conferences (COP)
COP is the yearly meeting of the countries that signed the UN climate treaty of 1992.
What the paper can ask
- UNFCCC adopted 9 May 1992, opened for signature at Rio in June 1992, in force 21 March 1994; 198 parties.
- COP1 was Berlin 1995; the Kyoto Protocol came from COP3 (1997) and the Paris Agreement from COP21 (2015).
- Only one year, 2020, had no COP (the pandemic).
- The UNFCCC is one of three 'Rio Conventions', with the biodiversity (CBD) and desertification (UNCCD) treaties.
Latest
COP30 was held in Belem, Brazil, in November 2025; COP31 runs 9 to 20 November 2026 in Antalya, Turkiye, with Murat Kurum as President and Australia's Chris Bowen leading negotiations; COP32 goes to Ethiopia in 2027.
Why exams ask
Every year the host city, the COP number and the headline decision are asked; the previous and next hosts are the usual distractors.
The full story
The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted in 1992 at the Rio Earth Summit and came into force in 1994. Its 198 parties meet every year as the Conference of the Parties, or COP, numbered from COP1 in Berlin in 1995. Big COPs produce treaties: the Kyoto Protocol at COP3 (1997) and the Paris Agreement at COP21 (2015), under which every country pledges its own emission cuts toward a shared temperature limit.
In the news
- India sets COP31 priorities: predictable climate finance, tech transfer, party-driven mitigation 3 Nov
- COP31 set for Antalya, Turkiye, 9-20 November 2026 3 Oct
- India and Saudi Arabia resist 'tipping points' wording at Bonn climate talks (SB64) 15 Jun
- Bonn SB64 climate talks run 8 to 18 June 2026 and end with little progress 8 Jun
Test yourself
1.The Kyoto Protocol (1997) set binding emission reduction targets for:
Correct. Kyoto, adopted in 1997 and in force from 2005, bound developed countries to cut greenhouse gases; the Paris Agreement later asked all countries for NDCs.
Not quite. Kyoto, adopted in 1997 and in force from 2005, bound developed countries to cut greenhouse gases; the Paris Agreement later asked all countries for NDCs. It goes into your error book.
2.The Paris Agreement (2015) aims to hold global warming well below 2 degrees Celsius and to pursue efforts to limit it to:
Correct. Adopted at COP21 in Paris in December 2015 and in force from 4 November 2016, the Agreement relies on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
Not quite. Adopted at COP21 in Paris in December 2015 and in force from 4 November 2016, the Agreement relies on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). It goes into your error book.
3.Which COP of the UNFCCC, held at Dubai in 2023, concluded the first Global Stocktake and operationalised the loss and damage fund?
Correct. COP28 (Dubai, 2023) completed the first Global Stocktake under the Paris Agreement and called for transitioning away from fossil fuels.
Not quite. COP28 (Dubai, 2023) completed the first Global Stocktake under the Paris Agreement and called for transitioning away from fossil fuels. It goes into your error book.