Week 45: Disco COP Has Opened Again

Dear all,

Bubbles are gone. The clowns in funny hats and balloons are still there. Glittery, yellowish confetti lies across the tables and floors. The music has stopped, and the dance floor yawns empty. Plastic cups with logos of leading fossil companies stand firmly on deserted tables. Disco COP has opened again.

“This time is different,” they say. This time, it’s not about the music but about the dancing. This time, the disco owners are absent. Instead, line managers and subsidiary presidents are in charge. “In charge” sounds important—yet being in charge of the world’s largest climate disco turned climate casino looks far more complicated than before.

Where are we, ten years after one of the biggest climate casino events took place? Do you remember the vibe? “Now or never.” “No planet B.” “Business and politics for a sustainable future.” The excitement, the selfies, the statements.

But when the music stops, any disco in the world is just an empty hall—walled off from creeping reality. Last year, emissions jumped the most in history, rising four times faster (+2.3%) than the recent annual average. Not a single country includes a commitment to reduce oil and gas production or phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies in its climate plan.