The accord was sealed after two weeks of talks, conducted as Paris reeled from the November 13 terrorist attacks. It is a health insurance policy for the planet. “That’s a fundamental that we have always supported”, said Dirk Forrister, president of the International Emissions Trading Association. Negotiators agreed to establish by 2025 a new target to scale up climate finance. I believe it is an example we could gainfully follow across the political agenda.
Advertisement
Extend a mechanism to address “loss and damage” resulting from climate change that explicitly will not “involve or provide a basis for any liability or compensation”. That is why I have made it a top priority of my tenure.
If we aspire to conquer climate change, more serious commitment is needed. Oil-dependent economies were among the most resistant to early suggestions of including a pledge in the accord to totally “decarbonize” the world economy, and that language was softened in the final text.
Star climate experts also drew big crowds. Leadership from the U.S.in the form of a market-based climate solution can ensure that the promises of Paris are kept. Though the principle finds mention in the Paris agreement, the document also states that the principle was included “in the light of different national circumstances”, thereby subtly replacing “historical responsibility’ with “national circumstances”.
Still, the NGO Climate Action Tracker estimates that a fully implemented Paris Agreement will lead to an average warming of 2.7 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels by 2100, well short of the Paris goal of a 1.5C rise in temperature. The issue of which provisions to make legally binding (expressed as “shall” as opposed to “should”) was a central concern for many countries, in particular the United States, which wanted an agreement the president could accept without seeking congressional approval.
To strengthen emissions reduction efforts, the Paris Agreement calls on each country to review its goal every five years.
Currently, these national targets have already significantly bent the emissions curve downwards.
Scientific support. Prior worldwide environmental treaties have been effective when they had the active participation of the global scientific community.
Javadekar said that the agreement outlines the road map to achieve this target while stating that the accord is more “durable and ambitious”. However, it must serve as a springboard towards increasing ambition in the years ahead.
The deal obliges developed nations to help developing countries pay for reducing pollution and adapting to the impacts of climate change. What does the climate deal mean for Turkey? He added, “It is a victory for the most vulnerable countries, the small islands, the least developed countries and all those with the most to lose, who came to Paris and said they didn’t want sympathy, they wanted action”. The developing countries are totally opposed to any such restrictions. What will politicians do when climate responsibility interferes with short-term economic gain?
The Paris Agreement rests on a number of interacting parts, all of which are necessary to make it work. By addressing climate change we are advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Advertisement
UP IN THE AIR The participants at the Paris conference – officially the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP21 – accounted for almost 100% of heat-trapping gases spewed worldwide.
