The conference is scheduled to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom, between 31 October and 12 November 2021, under the co-presidency of the United Kingdom and Italy.

The conference is the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the third meeting of the parties to the Paris Agreement.

This conference is the first time that parties are expected to commit to enhanced ambition since COP21. Parties are required to carry out every five years, as outlined in the Paris Agreement, a process colloquially known as the 'ratchet mechanism'.

The venue for the conference is the SEC Centre in Glasgow. Originally due to be held in November 2020 at the same venue, the event was postponed for twelve months because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland.

Twenty-five thousand delegates from 200 countries are attending. Among the most high-profile, and socially influential attendees are US President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, climate activist Greta Thunberg, former US President Barack Obama, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.