At a Climate Conference in Oil Country, Progress Remains Elusive
The COP29 climate conference in Azerbaijan saw earnest negotiations mix with an existential question about the pace and power of diplomacy.
Illustration: Maggie Cowles for Bloomberg
Over the past two weeks, the Baku Olympic Stadium in Azerbaijan has served as a temporary Thunderdome for the United Nations’ COP29 climate conference. Some 20,000 delegates from nearly 200 countries gathered for small confabs by the concession stands, while all-hands meetings were staged on a football pitch tricked out with wooden floors and waterproof tents.
Outside the stadium, battery-powered cars and buses emblazoned with the COP29 logo ferried delegates through city streets largely free from traffic. Recycling bins abounded, and some hotels swapped plastic key cards for cardboard, citing sustainability.