Glasgow can already celebrate one success: In the Antarctic, a glacier has just been named after the Scottish city, more precisely after the World Climate Conference that began there.

In this and the next week, the 25,000 participants from almost 200 countries at the COP26 event want to ensure that efforts to save the global climate are intensified, on the one hand with stricter political obligations, on the other hand with specific mechanisms in accordance with the rule book from the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015.

Christian Geinitz

Business correspondent in Berlin

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The expectations of "Glasgow" have been subdued in the last few days. Many climate fighters consider the announcements of the G20 summit in Rome at the weekend to be too weak. Because the heads of state and government there have committed to the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees compared to the pre-industrial age by the end of the century. This must not only be done “if possible”, as it was still called in Paris, but brought “within reach”. In the details, however, there were only vague commitments, such as those to make the world greenhouse gas neutral by “mid-century”. But one can also find positive things in “Rome”. Because “within reach” means, at best, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. That is exactly what science demands.

In addition, China recently committed not to finance any coal-fired power plants abroad.

It is also good news that the US has returned to the Paris Climate Agreement and that President Joe Biden is working in both Rome and Glasgow.

Immediately before the double conferences in Rome and Glasgow, Canada and Germany had clarified the financing, which must be reorganized.

It is now clear that the developing countries will not receive the 100 billion dollars annually for climate protection and adaptation until 2023, which the industrialized countries have pledged for 2020.

In Glasgow it will be a question of whether the missing amounts will be paid in arrears.

"We are still heading for a climate catastrophe"

Another key point of debate is “damage and loss”. It is about the extent to which the industrialized countries are liable in the developing countries due to their “historical climate debt”. Some large nations like India also need to update their National Climate Change Contributions (NDC) at the conference. More is expected of Brazil too. But after China disappointed with its new NDC last week, the tightening could be modest.

There is no lack of good intentions, as became clear on Monday lunchtime. As a greeting, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that it was a matter of defusing the “bomb” of the climate catastrophe at the last minute. He adopted the formulations of the Fridays For Future movement and its founder Greta Thunberg, who has been in Glasgow since Saturday. All promises are just "blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah", "unless we finally really tackle climate change at COP26 in Glasgow - and we can."

The world has the technology and can also raise the necessary money.

“The question is whether we have the will,” said Johnson.

UN Secretary General António Guterres made it clear: “We are still heading for a climate catastrophe.” All states would have to get out of coal, end their aid to fossil fuels and set a price for all types of emissions.

US President Joe Biden and Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) also made commitments to climate protection.

Unlike in Rome, this time she was not accompanied by her possible successor Olaf Scholz (SPD).

Activists are dissatisfied

With such appearances, the politicians want to counter the accusation that there are big words in Rome and Glasgow, but little tangible. This is precisely what contributes to the bad mood among climate activists who have traveled to Scotland by the thousands. Some of them protested in Glasgow on Saturday and further demonstrations are expected.

In the “green zone” next to the official event site, where the NGOs come together, there is dissatisfaction. "Over there, old white men are meeting again, they shouldn't decide about our future," says a Polish environmental activist. She wants referendums, for example to phase out coal. A young Canadian with blue and yellow pony hairstyle who is studying in Heidelberg praises the outgoing federal government: "Ms. Merkel was conservative, but at least she freed you from nuclear power." “100 percent renewable energies, that must be the goal for the whole world,” he says.

The hard work in Glasgow, as in all "COPs" before, is not done by the summits, but in tough negotiations. For the most important part, the environment ministers will meet next week. Svenja Schulze (SPD) arrives late because of the coalition negotiations. It is about questions of transparency and verification of national greenhouse gas reductions, about the alignment of the periods for the evaluation and tightening and finally about the transfer of emission certificates across national borders.

Countries like Brazil want all programs for rainforest protection to be credited to their own climate account, even if the work and money come from countries or companies from abroad.

In addition to the major political pitfalls that the summit on Monday and Tuesday will address, there will also be many small stumbling blocks from Wednesday onwards.

Whether the world stumbles in terms of climate policy, whether it falls or still catches up, that is the basic question in Glasgow.