12 pictures from the Paris climate talks

The UN Climate Change Conference, or COP21, is taking place in Paris until 11 December with the aim of securing an agreement on global action to keep global warming below 2° Celsius.

Here are some pictures from the opening days of the meeting.

Christopher Loeak, President of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, delivers a speech. The Marshall Islands are already being affected by rising sea levels, with high tides causing flooding and damage to drinking water supplies and other infrastructure. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe.

French President Francois Hollande (C, 1st row), United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon (4th, 1st row) and Christiana Figueres (3rdL, 1st row), Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, pose for a photo with head of states and government during the opening day. REUTERS/Jacky Naegelen.

Security guards patrol at the “Paris de L’Avenir” exhibition, a showcase for tangible climate solutions in the context of the summit, in front of the Hôtel de Ville, Paris’s city hall. The conference is taking place against the backdrop of the Paris attacks, with tight security around the talks. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard.

U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Francois Hollande (C) and Bill Gates (R) take part in the launch of Mission Innovation, a landmark commitment to dramatically accelerate public and private global clean energy innovation. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque.

Vice President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Masoumeh Ebtekar delivers a speech during the opening session of the conference. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe.

A visitor walks past the German pavilion. REUTERS/Jacky Naegelen.

French President Francois Hollande puts his thumbprint on a wall at the Nicolas Hulot Foundation stand in the Climate Generations area during the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21) at Le Bourget, near Paris, France, December 1, 2015. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (R) talks with French Ecology Minister Segolene Royal as they attend a meeting on Carbon Pricing on the opening day of the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21) at Le Bourget, near Paris, France, November 30, 2015. REUTERS/Jacky Naegelen

Prototype electric bicycles are presented as part of the exhibition “Paris de L’Avenir”, a showcase for tangible climate solutions in the context of the COP21 World Climate Summit, in front of Paris city hall, France, November 30, 2015, as the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21) started today in Le Bourget. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard

Delegates take a break during the opening day of the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21) at Le Bourget, near Paris, France, November 30, 2015. REUTERS/Jacky Naegelen

Indigenous children depict fish in the sea during a rally held the day before the start of the Paris Climate Change Conference (COP21), in Sao Paulo, Brazil, November 29, 2015. REUTERS/Nacho Doce

Workers construct a giant whale sculpture along the side of the river Seine, ahead of the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21), in Paris, France, November 29, 2015. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

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Author: Joe Myers is a Digital Content Producer at Formative Content. 

Image: French President Francois Hollande waits for a guest before a bilateral meeting during the opening day of the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21) at Le Bourget, near Paris, France, November 30, 2015. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer.