The new climate change agreement is now almost a reality as negotiators already approved a draft Saturday, during the Paris climate talks. This draft approval symbolizes a significant development however, this deal is still filled with numerous competing options as negotiators still need to resolve key points of disagreement, that would hopefully produce a lasting global pact to alleviate the effects of climate change.

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These climate talks or the United Nations Climate Change Conference/COP21 has reached the halfway point of its run which began in November 30 and will end on December 11. The draft of the agreement will be reviewed by environment and foreign ministers who will still continue to revise and work on it until next week. 

This new climate change draft has been in the works since 2011, where many are optimistic although in a more cautious tone, after delegates finally accepted this draft.  According to French Ambassador for the international climate negotiations, Laurence Tubiana, this is a milestone, and I am probably not the only one feeling very emotional about this. 

This 48 page long document still involves disagreements which stem from numerous expectations of rich and poor nations and countries lying somewhere in the middle. The draft also has multiple options in terms of who should be responsible for paying the global transition of clean energy sources and what will happen if nations do not achieve their goals and promises to fight climate change.

More radical proposals include the formation of an international tribunal for climate justice, to deal with those rich and developed nations that did not hit their targets or fulfill their commitments, which will likely face opposition from the same wealthy nations.

According to French president Francois Hollande, so let's work, and now it's up to ministers and government officials of every nation to remove these options and find compromises to make crucial decisions on these challenging issues without undermining the goals of the climate pact.

The negotiators will only have a week to refine and slim down the document as it is still pockmarked with brackets and to figure out how to resolve some sticky arguments. According to China's chief climate change negotiator, Su Wei, this pact has laid a solid foundation for next week, with all the ingredients and seasoning for the recipes, complete. However, next week will become the actual cooking.

There will also be 10 U.S. Senators from the Democratic party who reassured the other representatives of other nations at the conference that they will be speaking on behalf of Barack Obama and will defend hard earned efforts to fight climate change against Republicans currently in control of American Congress.

TagsUN climate talks draft approved, climate change conference, paris climate talks, UN COP21, first draft approved climate deal