From COP21 to COP26: Why Failure is Not an Option

Online

The French Embassy and the French Institute presented From COP21 to COP26: Why Failure is Not an Option, on Saturday 12 December, on the occasion of the 5^th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, signed at the COP21 in December 2015, and the virtual Climate Ambition Summit co-organised by the UK, France and the UN.

This exceptional online event featured an address by HRH the Prince of Wales and a panel discussion with distinguished guests, including Laurent Fabius, President of the French Constitutional Council and President of COP21, and Anne-Marie Trevelyan, UK’s International Champion on Adaptation and Resilience for the COP26 Presidency. The event looked back at how the COP21 was a landmark in the fight against climate change, while looking ahead to what COP26 ought to achieve.

Click here to see detailed programme

Replay the online event

 

 

PROGRAMME

• Welcome address by H.E. Madame Catherine Colonna, French Ambassador to the United Kingdom (5’)

 

• A message from HRH the Prince of Wales to the attendees (5’)

▶️ Read the full address by HRH The Prince of Wales
 

• Art of Change 21 (5’)

Screening of a series of masked portraits commissioned by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, featuring leading figures committed to climate ambition on the five-year anniversary of COP21. The London portrait shows World Cup champion and Chelsea player Olivier Giroud wearing a mask created for him by British artist Lucy Orta.
 

• Panel Discussion: What Do We Want from COP26 (1.15’)

– with Laurent Fabius, President of the French Constitutional Council, President of COP21
– Anne-Marie Trevelyan, UK’s International Champion on Adaptation and Resilience for the COP26 Presidency
– Alan Jope, CEO of Unilever
– Professor Camille Parmesan, a leading expert on biodiversity
– Chaired by Journalist Fiona Harvey, The Guardian
 

• Closing remarks by H.E. Ambassador Joao Vale de Almeida, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to the UK (5’)