International response to climate change

The countries approved the Convention in May 1992 and it came into force on 21 March 1994. At the first Conference of the Parties (COP), or Climate Summits, held in Berlin in early 1995, marked the start of a new round of negotiations that concluded with the Kyoto Protocol, approved in December 1997. The Kyoto Protocol, which legally binds developed countries to emission reduction targets, came into force on 18 November 2004, after being endorsed by 55 countries or parties to the Convention.

The Convention had practically universally backing in June 2007, when it was endorsed by 191 countries. There are now 195 countries or parties to the Convention and they are overriding authority to make decisions regarding climate change.

20 Conferences of the Parties have so far been held:

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the international body tasked with assessing scientific knowledge on climate change. It was established by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 1988, and endorsed by the UN General Assembly, to provide policy makers with regular scientific assessments of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and the mitigation and adaptation options.

Since it was established, the IPCC has prepared five assessment reports, with the most recent being submitted in the run-up to the COP20 held in Lima in December 2014.

The Fifth Assessment Report, produced by over 800 scientists, is conclusive: climate change threatens irreversible and dangerous impacts, but options exist to limit its effects.

Human influence on the climate system is clear and growing, with impacts observed on all continents. If left unchecked, climate change will increase the likelihood of severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts for people and ecosystems. However, options are available to adapt to climate change and implementing stringent mitigation activities can ensure that the impacts of climate change remain within a manageable range, creating a brighter and more sustainable future.

The report expresses with greater certainty than in previous assessments the fact that emissions of greenhouse gases and other anthropogenic drivers have been the dominant cause of observed warming since the mid-20^th century.

The Kyoto Protocol emerged from the III United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and was signed on 11 December 1997. It commits industrialized countries to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions. It was based on the principles of the Convention. It established binding emission reduction targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European Union, recognising that they are principally responsible for the current high levels of emissions in the atmosphere as a result of burning fossil fuels for over 150 years.

The Protocol has led governments to establish legislation and policies to meet their commitment, companies to take the environment into account when decision making about their investments and it has also fostered the setting up of the carbon market.

The Kyoto Protocol is considered to be the first important step towards a truly global system to reduce and stabilise greenhouse gas emissions.

On 12 December 2015, the Conference of the Parties (COP) in Paris adopted the Paris Agreement.

The Paris Agreement is a legally-binding multilateral agreement adopted by 195 countries. The governments of those countries agreed on the long-term target of holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 ºC above pre-industrial levels and to seek to limit the increase to 1.5 ºC, as that would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change.

According to the Agreement, global emissions should peak as soon as possible, recognising that peaking will take longer for developing countries and that the reductions needed should be perform in accordance with the best available science.

Before and during the Paris conference, countries submitted their comprehensive national climate action plans to cut their emissions. The total sum of the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) are not yet enough to keep global warming under 2 ºC by the end of the century. However, the agreement maps the way forward to achieve this target.

Commitment: The government agreed to meet every 5 years to set more ambitious targets as required by science. They also agreed to report to each other and the public on the progress achieved as regards implementing their targets. A joint inventory will be prepared every five years to ensure transparency and accountability. A global emission accounting mechanism will be set up that must be transparent and efficient.

Support: The EU and other developed countries will continue to support climate action to reduce emissions and build resilience to climate change impacts in developing countries. Other countries are encourage to provide, or continue to provide, such support on a voluntary basis. Continuous and enhanced international support will be provided to help developing countries adapt to climate change. Developed countries intend to continue their existing collective goal to mobilised USD 100 billion per year until 2025, when a new collective goal will be set.

Loss and damage: The Paris Agreement has an independent article regarding the issue of the loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change. The countries acknowledge the need to cooperate and enhance the understanding, action and support in different areas, such as early warning systems, emergency preparedness and risk insurance.

The post-Paris summit timeline envisaged by the European Commission is as follows:

March 2016: Environment Council
April 2016: signing in New York
2018: dialogue with an assessment of possible new global actions.
2020: updating the existing INDCs and presentation of the first half-century strategy regarding emissions.
2023: global assessment.
2025: updating of the INDCs.

Last modified date: 11/12/2017