It happened! New climate agreement reached at COP21
It happened! New climate agreement reached at COP21
The 196 countries that gathered in Paris for COP21 finally reached a new climate agreement on December 12th.
This agreement is extremely encouraging and sets the bar high for the ambition needed to address climate change. It is not perfect but it provides key elements for successful international cooperation, emission reductions, and mainstreaming climate change in the development agenda. The details of the agreement include:
- Ambition to hold the increase of global average temperatures “well below” 2°C and targeting 1.5°C. Achieving this will require nations to ramp up efforts, but for the first time we have a deal where each country has agreed to contribute its “fair share”;
- Subject to ratification by all the Parties, the Agreement shall enter into force in 2020. Initial country pledges (NDCs) will be reviewed in 2023 and subsequently every five years;
- A transparency framework to track progress made in implementing and achieving the NDCs;
- A mechanism to replace the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation carbon markets starting in 2020 and promoting sustainable development;
- A commitment from developing countries to provide finance for the achievement of countries’ mitigation and adaptation efforts as well as for loss and damage. While no specific figures appear in the agreement, it provides for a mobilization “beyond previous efforts”.
Beyond the agreement, the main achievement of this COP is that it has brought together politics, businesses, and civil society to agree on a common goal. In addition, the link between development and climate change is now a given and the quantification of health and social benefits of low-carbon development projects will reinforce this connection.