As the United Nations Climate Change Conference delves into a diverse array of complex topics, from energy policies to global financial aid, the annual summit has crafted a glossary of key terms used during the event.

Below is a guide to some of the terms expected to be used at COP29, which began today, Monday, in Baku, Azerbaijan.

• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
  Refers to the 1992 agreement committing nearly 200 countries to combat global warming, as well as the secretariat established to implement the agreement.

• COP (Conference of the Parties)
  Refers to the "Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC," held annually for countries signed onto the UNFCCC. This year’s 29th session (COP29) is hosted in Baku, Azerbaijan, since the agreement took effect in 1994.

• New Collective Quantified Goal
  A relatively recent term, central to COP29, referring to the annual climate finance target pledged for climate-related efforts in developing countries.

• Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)
  NDCs are pledges each country makes to reduce emissions and adapt to climate change. Countries must update and expand their NDCs every five years, with the next update due in February. However, some nations plan to present new commitments in Baku.

• Global Warming
  Refers to the gradual increase in the planet’s atmospheric temperature.

• Climate Change
  While often used interchangeably with “global warming,” climate change encompasses not only warming but also its effects, such as extreme weather events.

• Greenhouse Gases
  These gases can trap the sun’s heat in the atmosphere, leading to global warming. The most potent of these gases are methane and carbon dioxide, commonly known as "carbon emissions" because they both contain carbon. Excess carbon emissions mainly stem from fossil fuel combustion and other industrial activities.

• Paris Agreement
  The Paris Agreement, reached in 2015 at COP21 in Paris, commits countries to limit global temperature rise to “well below” 2°C above pre-industrial levels, aiming for a target of 1.5°C. The agreement also calls for an update to NDCs every five years.

• Net-Zero Emissions
  This term doesn’t mean zero emissions but rather achieving a balance where no more emissions are added than what is absorbed through carbon capture technologies, tree planting, or other methods. Achieving net-zero emissions would stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.

• Loss and Damage
  Last year, governments pledged $800 million to a new "Loss and Damage" fund to support poorer countries affected by climate change-induced disasters. Now with a fund manager and a host country, COP29 will determine fund allocation and seek further contributions.

• Carbon Credits
  Carbon credits allow a country or company to offset some of their carbon emissions by investing in emissions-reduction projects elsewhere.