As COP31 Antalya kicks off, can world move beyond big promises?

With its pulsing music, flashy images and barrage of special effects, the key message in Antalya's marketing video is clear: Turkey , the host of the 31st edition of the UN climate talks , is cool, stylish, modern — and eco-conscious.

Both President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife, Emine, make an appearance, with Turkey's first lady calling climate change "one of the most visible manifestations of the burden human activity has placed on our planet."

From November 9-20, delegates from nearly every country in the world are coming together in the Mediterranean city of Antalya to chart a way out of the climate crisis. Turkey is the official host , and Australia will lead the negotiations. But the issues they'll confront during those 12 days are far more serious than the showy marketing campaign make them out to be.

Severe drought , extreme heat , wildfires and record-low water levels in Europe's main waterways — summer across the continent was dominated by climate emergencies.

And in late August, a series of flash floods triggered by a rock-ice avalanche in Nepal and Tibet washed away entire villages, killing more than 1,400 people and leaving thousands missing. Climate experts have linked the disaster to melting ice and a warming climate.

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