COP26 will take place in Glasgow later this year as countries from around the world convene to establish strategies to deal with climate change. 

Some of the world's most influential leaders will descend on Scotland's largest city to establish targets for reducing countries' individual and collective carbon footprints.

The conference, which will unfold over the first 12 days in November at the SEC, will have four principal items on the agenda, accompanied by five themes.

Here's what you need to know...

What is on the agenda for COP26 in Glasgow? 

As the joint President of COP26, the UK was in charge of setting out four main goals for the conference, as well as establishing five themes. 

The four principal goals on the agenda for COP26 are:

  • Increase mitigation efforts: countries should aim to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to keep the 1.5 degree Celsius goal within reach
  • Improve adaptation and resilience: member states should work to protect the global population and those in the most vulnerable regions from the imacts of climate change
  • Increase finance and support: developed countries should generate £1 billion each year to support developing nations against climate change. This relates to the UNFCCC's founding principle of "common but differentiated responsibility", which means that although every country should make an effort to tackle climate change, this should be in relation to each country's capabilities 
  • Enhance international collaboration: this refers to finalising the Paris rulebook, which brings together the measures needed to implement the Paris agreement established in 2015

What are the five themes of COP26?

The five themes set out for COP26 by the UK Presidency are:

  • Clean energy: speed up the clean energy transition by promoting the use of cheaper renewables and storage
  • Adaptation and resilience: help communities adapt and prepare for the worst impact of climate change
  • Energy transition in transport: accelerating the global transition to zero emission vehicles
  • Nature-based solutions: safeguard and restore natural habitats to reserve biodiversity
  • Finance: create greener jobs and a cleaner financial system