The Conversation heads to the Paris climate talks

This December, the world’s hopes will be pinned on the United Nations COP21 meeting in Paris, where leaders and negotiators from more than 190 countries will attempt to do something that hasn’t been achieved in more than 20 years of negotiations: forge a meaningful global climate deal.

The talks will be complex but the goal is simple: keep global warming to less than 2 degrees, the “guardrail” that scientists say stands between us and the most dangerous manifestations of climate change. Six years after the infamous flop in Copenhagen, which yielded an agreement that fell far short of expectations, the Paris summit has been described as perhaps our last chance to preserve a safe climate.

The Conversation will be there, and we’ll tell you everything you need to know in the buildup: the pledges on the table, the likely negotiating tactics, and the countries and leaders that could make or break the deal.

When the negotiations are underway, our academic authors will be reporting, blogging and analysing the progress towards an agreement. And whatever the summit’s outcome, our experts will interpret what it means - both for the rich countries who need to make the deepest carbon cuts, and for the poorest who stand to lose the most if they don’t.

Will our leaders succeed where previous negotiators have failed? Will the world be happy with the deal? And crucially, will it be enough to avert climate disaster?

Find out by subscribing to our newsletter or joining our Facebook page. And stay up to date with developments in Paris, as well as all of The Conversation’s global environment coverage, on Twitter by following @TC_environment.

And if you’re an academic who is travelling to the summit, let us know at Paris2015@theconversation.com and you can help us cover one of the biggest stories of the year.