LE BOURGET, France – Five days to save the world.

That’s all the time ministers from over 190 countries have to finalize the world’s action plan to keep global warming at bay. 

France’s foreign minister Laurent Fabius opened the final week of the UN climate conference in Paris on Monday, December 7. He reminded ministers gathered there of the deadline he, as conference president, wants to stick to:

• Wednesday, December 9 – First overview of the final agreement must be completed
• Thursday, December 10 – Agreement must be finalized
• Friday, December 11 – Agreement must be formally adopted

“The time for decisions has come,” he told ministers and negotiators, emphasizing the political nature of the final week of the summit.

The status of the draft agreement has lifted spirits. As of posting, it is 21 pages long, an achievement given that it was at 55 pages when the conference began, said Philippine delegation member Purple Romero. (READ: One more week to change the world: the Paris Promise)

The weight of words

Fabius said the draft now has “fewer options and solutions can be seen more clearly.”

Fewer pages in the document mean negotiators have been able to agree on certain options for climate action, allowing bracketed parts to be deleted. Bracketed items are words suggested to be part of the agreement but still up for discussion and can be removed at any time.

The choice of which words to use determines the level of ambition and efficacy of the final deal.

For instance, on December 3, there were 1,080 open brackets and 141 options. Two days after, this was whittled down to 567 open brackets and 68 options, according to an analysis by the group, Paris Agreement.

UN Sec-Gen Ban Ki-moon describes Paris climate agreement as a ‘peace agreement’ in #COP21 press con here in Paris pic.twitter.com/OMsLxsYReC

— Pia Ranada (@piaranada) December 7, 2015

Romero said the 21-page number is a good sign. It is 3 times shorter than draft agreements in previous climate conferences as they entered into their final weeks.

But a lot of major issues remain unresolved in the draft. These include climate finance, whether the deal’s goal should be to limit warming below 2°C or 1.5°C, and whether to include human rights provisions.

‘What did you do?’

While Fabius reminded the ministers of their concrete deliverables, other world leaders and experts brought home the message of what’s at stake for the entire world. 

“Your work here this week can help eradicate poverty, spark a clean energy revolution and provide jobs, opportunities and hope for tomorrow…I count on your leadership and wise decisions for humanity,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The head of the UN’s highest scientific body on climate change, Hoesung Lee, said, “By the end of this year, we may have reached a temp increase of 1°C. Please be more ambitious and start action immediately.”

The environmental minister of Tonga, a small island state in the Pacific, reminded them that his country’s very existence is threatened by global warming impacts, specifically rising sea levels.

“Sea level rise in Tonga is 6.4 millimeters per year, 3 times the global average…Tonga considers climate change the single greatest threat to the livelihood and well-being of her people,” said Siaosi Sovaleni. 

The UN’s climate chief, Christiana Figueres, said this question keeps her up at night:

“‘What did you do?’ The same question will be asked of you. May we be able to stand tall and say we did everything that was necessary.” – Rappler.com

For live updates on #COP21, check out Rappler’s live blog.