The Climate Diplomat: A Personal History of the Cop Conferences

Drawing on over three decades of experience as the UK and EU’s lead climate negotiator, Peter Betts paints a warts-and-all picture of how world leaders and diplomats tackle the COP negotiations, providing a ringside seat at pivotal moments, such as the run-up to Copenhagen (COP15), the Cartagena Dialogue, the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement (COP21) and Glasgow (COP26). The Climate Diplomat is a unique insider account of the discussions that have shaped and continue to shape the future of our planet, but it also describes how the major powers such as the US, the EU and China negotiate with one another. Reflecting on his life’s work in the final months of his life, Betts provides a revealing portrait of international politics at the highest level with key insights into the motivations of all the major players. He also gives a detailed history of COP, explaining how this controversial and often embattled forum has been crucial in altering the future of our planet’s ecosystem.

Peter Betts was the Director of International Climate Change at Defra from 2008 to 2018 with overall responsibility for UK strategy on international climate policy and Lead Negotiator for the EU for six years, including at the Paris COP. After leaving the Civil Service in 2018 he was senior advisor to the Director General of the International Renewable Energy Agency and advisor to the International Energy Agency. He was appointed CBE in 2010 and CB in 2020. Peter died of brain cancer in October 2023.