The UN Climate Conference has adopted a framework for the practical implementation of the Paris Climate Accord after two weeks of negotiations. The plenum of representatives from nearly 200 countries approved a compromise on Saturday evening in the Polish city of Katowice after the talks extended into Saturday. Delegates had worked beyond Friday's scheduled end to the conference to hash out a rulebook for implementing and financing the 2015 Paris climate agreement. The head of the conference, Michal Kurtyka, sealed the plenary compromise with a stroke of the gavel. Kurtyka said that the climate negotiations were not about national interests, but about humanity and responsibility for future generations. The decisions were "1,000 small steps forward," he said. "You can be proud," Kurtyka said. A sticking point among the states was whether to bring in more ambitious climate protection targets before 2020. Another stumbling block was a new global pollution rights trading system. Three years ago it was agreed in Paris that global warming should be kept to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and preferably to less than 1.5 degrees, but countries were to put forward their own plans to cut emissions.
