While urging countries to accelerate action, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell struck an optimistic tone on Tuesday following the release of a new report on updated national climate commitments.
The new report details the latest round of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted by governments, assessing both the progress achieved and the major challenges that remain.
Taken together, Mr. Stiell said, they reveal "some green shoots of good news" and provide "clear stepping stones towards net zero emissions."
If countries deliver on their current pledges, global emissions could decline by around 10 per cent by 2035, according to the UN climate chief. However, he cautioned that "action must be accelerated" to prevent further global warming.
Holistic approach
Many of the new NDCs adopt a "whole-of-society" approach, incorporating gender and youth perspectives and seeking to ensure that all sectors benefit from the shift to a low-carbon economy.
Mr. Stiell described this generation of commitments as a "step-change in quality, credibility and economic breadth", calling on governments to implement policies that enable every nation to share in the benefits of clean energy and climate resilience.
The UN climate chief added that the private sector is also moving in the right direction, attracted by the huge rewards that the clean economy promises: "As the global shift to clean energy continues to scale, the dividends to follow will be far greater still, as climate action emerges as the economic growth and jobs engine of the 21st century."
Is 1.5 still alive?
On the same day as the release of the climate report, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in an interview with the Guardian that humanity has failed to limit man-made global warming to the totemic 1.5ºC, leading to "devastating consequences."
Mr. Guterres told journalists that delegates preparing to attend the COP30 UN Climate Conference in Belém, Brazil, in November need to change course and bring about a "dramatic decrease of emissions as soon as possible."
Nevertheless, Mr. Stiell insisted that the science shows temperatures can be brought back down to 1.5°C (above pre-industrial levels), by substantially stepping up the pace of climate action.
Synthesis Report: Key points
- Progress and Ambition: The 64 new NDCs show improved quality and broader economic coverage, with 89 per cent of countries on board setting economy-wide targets. However, emissions are still not declining fast enough to meet Paris Agreement goals.
- Emission Reductions: Full implementation of these NDCs could reduce emissions by 17 per cent below 2019 levels, by 2035, with a projected peak before 2030.
- Integration of Global Stocktake: 88 per cent of countries incorporated outcomes from the first Global Stocktake (a five-yearly process detailing global climate action and support), aligning their NDCs with long-term net zero targets and policies aimed at tripling renewable energy capacity and transitioning away from fossil fuels.
- Comprehensive Scope: All NDCs go beyond mitigation - incorporating factors such as adaptation, finance, technology transfer, and loss and damage
- International Cooperation and Support Needs: Implementation depends heavily on international cooperation, innovative financing, and capacity-building, especially for developing countries - with significant gaps in funding and technical support.
