On 30 September 2011, International Relations Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane confirmed that South Africa will be ready to host the hotly contested United Nations climate change conference, the COP17 in Durban from 28 November to 9 December 2011
At the 15th United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Copenhagen in 2009, South Africa agreed to drastically cut its emissions.
There are several climate change meetings where world leaders and groups gather to discuss global warming, CO2 emission reduction targets, climate change funding mechanisms and more throughout the year.