COP26 was a positive step forward in the fight against climate change, but as the UN Secretary General pointed out in his comments: “it is not enough. We must accelerate climate action to keep alive the goal of limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees.” The compromise deal reflects the interests, contradictions and political will in the world today.

Alongside my team of experts, I attended COP26 to meet with activists, diplomats, ministers and mayors from the UNECE region and beyond to find common ground in areas including sustainable energy, water, forests, cities and urban development. Away from the conference hall, we delivered real action to move the dial on all these issues.