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Articles on Paris 2015 backgrounders

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Protests at climate talks in New York in 2014. EPA/ANDREW KELLY

Timeline: UN climate negotiations

1988 marked the first call for climate action from the scientific community. Nearly 30 years later it’s been a bumpy ride.
The stage is set for a climate agreement - although it may be political rather than legal. EPA/Yoan Valat/AAP

Will the Paris agreement be legally binding?

Probably not, but that might be for the best if it encourages countries to be more ambitious in their commitments, rather than playing it safe to avoid falling foul of legal obligations.
Christian Hartmann/Reuters

COP21: what it is and why it matters

The 2015 “Conference of Parties” in Paris will bring together 195 nations rich and poor as well as the EU to try and hammer out a definitive climate agreement. So how does it all work?
UN lead climate negotiator Christiana Figueres (second from left) has been hailed as having the dynamism needed to drive the Paris talks. EPA/AAP

Why the Paris climate talks won’t be another Copenhagen

The much-hyped 2009 Copenhagen climate summit yielded only a flimsy accord. But, as Nick Rowley writes in part 2 of his three-part essay on the 2015 Paris climate talks, there are several reasons why this year won’t see another flop.
Countries are working towards meetings in Paris in November that could see the first global climate deal since the Kyoto Protocol. Taylor Miles/Flickr

Explainer: how countries could come to a global climate deal in 2015

Ahead of meetings at the end of this year in Paris, countries will submit draft contributions for a global climate deal. The goal: reducing greenhouse gases beyond 2020, and ultimately keeping global warming below 2C.

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