换句话说，COP21是一个不久将召开的共商解决全球变暖和气候变化问题的国际多国峰会。

这一切始于1992年的里约热内卢(Rio de Janeiro)地球峰会（Earth Summit）。那次峰会达成了联合国气候变化框架公约，力求将大气中温室气体浓度稳定在较低程度，从而阻止对环境的进一步破坏。科学家们发现，来自交通和工业的排放加速了气候变化，而这不是一件好事。

我喜欢冬天的巴黎

COP21将于11月30日至12月11日在巴黎(Paris)举行。这将是一次规模盛大的活动。公约现有成员国196个，其中大多数将出席这次会议。一些非成员国也将出席——如观察员国家和非政府组织。与会成员国希望起草一项新的国际气候协议或议定书。

到目前为止，至少有150个国家已经提交了减少温室气体排放和通过更清洁、更可持续的方式实现低碳未来的目标。这些目标，被称为“国家自定贡献预案”(Intended Nationally Determined Contributions)，也将是各方讨论如何阻止全球变暖和气候变化进程的内容之一。

人类正在使气候变化加速

科学家一致认为，过去40年中人类活动是全球变暖迅速加快的主要原因。气候变化的严重性已经得到有力证据的肯定。气候模式正在发生巨变：强烈风暴更加频繁，夏天更加炎热，冬天更加寒冷。如果世界继续变暖，海平面将升高，进而给沿海社区造成危害。海平面升高和干旱还可能形成新的迁徙趋势，给农业带来破坏。近年来，在有些地方，农作物由于暴露在臭氧之下，产量减少。而海洋变暖将影响全球的海洋生物，威胁人类赖以为生的渔业资源。

不会只是一场空谈盛会

COP21的核心是让空气更清洁，人类更健康，经济更繁荣，并防止岛国消失在海洋中。它的目标是：立即采取行动，使全球变暖程度被保持在低于2摄氏度。为实现这个目标，全球在未来几十年内必须显著减少温室气体排放。 （根据美国国家航空航天局NASA的资料[英文]，二氧化碳排放量今年达到最高水平。）

我不出席巴黎会议，如何有所作为？

• 尽可能了解全球变暖和气候变化在你国家中的影响。
• 通过网上直播（webcasts）和博客关注COP21的行动。
• 在“气候变化解决方案中心” （Climate Solutions Hub）提出你的解决方案。
• 跟踪分会会议，听取有关商业和公民社会问题的想法。一个大型的“可持续创新论坛”（Sustainable Innovation Forum）将展示发展绿色经济的商业创新。
• 在推特（Twitter）上关注#ActOnClimate，并通过@COP21发表你的观点。
• 联系你的政府官员，敦促他们立即采取行动！
  
  
  
  
  COP 21? Is it a new American police flick?
  
  

  It may sound like the latest film noir movie, but it has nothing to do with a police whodunnit. In America, people often informally use the word “cop” to refer to a police officer. But in this case, COP 21 is shorthand for the 21st Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

  To put it simply, COP 21 is an upcoming summit that brings countries together to solve the problems of global warming and climate change.

  It all began at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, where the UNFCCC was formed to find ways to “stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere” at low levels to stop further environmental damage. Scientists had found that these emissions from transportation and industry precipitated more rapid climate change — not a good thing.

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  Thousands walk down the Champs-Élysées in Paris during “a day without cars” in September 2015. (© AP Images)

  I love Paris in the winter

  COP 21 will meet in Paris from November 30 to December 11. It’s going to be big. To date, there are 196 parties to the convention, most of whom will attend. There are also nonmember attendees — observer states and nongovernmental organizations. The parties hope to draft a new international agreement, or protocol, on the climate.

  To date, at least 150 countries have submitted goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and achieving a low-carbon future through cleaner, more sustainable practices. These goals, called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, will figure in the the discussions among the parties on how to halt the progress of global warming and climate change.

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  Drought is occurring across the globe. Piety Lake, Oregon, is shown in 2010, left, and 2015. (© AP Images)

  Climate change is happening faster because of us

  Scientists agree that human activity is largely responsible for the rapid increase in global warming in the past 40 years. There is strong evidence supporting the seriousness of climate change. Drastic changes in weather patterns are occurring: more violent storms, hotter summers and colder winters. If the world continues to warm, sea levels will rise, harming communities located along coastlines. That and drought could create new migration patterns and harm agriculture. Crop yields in some places have diminished in recent years because of exposure to ozone. And warming oceans will affect marine life worldwide in ways that will harm fisheries upon which people depend for food.

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  Other places have too much water. Villagers wade through floods in Orissa, India, during a 2014 cyclone. (© AP Images)

  It will not be just a gab fest

  COP 21 will be about cleaner air, healthier people, stronger economies and keeping island nations from disappearing under the sea. The goal: act now to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. To accomplish that, significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions worldwide will have to be made over the next few decades. (Carbon dioxide emissions have reached the highest levels this year, according to NASA, the U.S. space agency.)

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  Data-transmitting weather balloons help researchers track the fast-melting Greenland ice sheet. (© AP Images)

  So what can I do if I’m not in Paris?

  • Learn as much as you can about the effects of global warming and climate change in your country.
  • Stay tuned to the COP 21 action on live webcasts and blogs.
  • Publish your solution on the Climate Solutions Hub.
  • Monitor side conferences for ideas on business and civil society issues. A large Sustainable Innovation Forum will showcase business innovations for green economies.
  • Follow #ActOnClimate on Twitter, and tweet your views @COP21.
  • Contact your government officials and urge them to take action now!