India’s Third National Communication to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was submitted on December 9, 2023. The report contains information on India’s greenhouse gas emissions, its vulnerability to climate change, and the measures it is taking to mitigate emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change. …
The present report is the official inventory submission of the European Union (EU) for 2021 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and also under the Kyoto Protocol (KP). The European Union (EU), as a party to the UNFCCC, reports annually on greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories for …
The Paris Agreement established a Global Stocktake process as a key safeguard mechanism to facilitate enhancement of the NDCs toward meeting the collective goals of the Agreement. This paper examines the questions of what an effective Global Stocktake process would look like, and what information and data are needed to …
From 2024, all countries will face more stringent reporting requirements on their climate action under the Paris Agreement’s enhanced transparency framework (ETF). For developing countries — and the least developed countries (LDCs) in particular — it is a big step up from existing arrangements. This paper analyses over 20 years …
There are clear challenges and opportunities for getting climate negotiations on track in 2021. After a lacklustre COP25, the vaunted 2020 ‘super year’ designed to reset the UNFCCC process succumbed to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, despite rolling postponements, the UNFCCC process and climate diplomacy has continued, albeit in dramatically altered …
A new report produced by the UN Secretariats of the Basel, Minamata, Rotterdam, & Stockholm conventions maps the interlinkages between hazardous chemicals, wastes and climate change, which combine to impact on efforts to conserve and restore nature. This report presents a comprehensive technical review of the literature on climate change …
Billed as a ‘super year’ for climate diplomacy, international efforts to address the climate crisis in 2020 were among the myriad processes affected by COVID-19. Amid worldwide travel restrictions and lockdown measures, climate diplomacy moved to virtual mode. This learning paper provides a theoretical framework to assess how the Least …
Under the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) of the Paris Agreement, Parties will be required to report information on national GHG inventories using a set of Common Reporting Tables (CRTs). The CRTs can provide an important source of data at the international and national levels. While a final set of tables …
Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) is a key nature-based solution (NBS) for the forest sector. Drawing on lessons from UNDP’s support to REDD+ countries over the past decade, this paper describes crucial areas for policy makers to consider when seeking to enhance their NDCs and support NDC …
UN Climate Change has published an initial assessment of Nationally Determined Contributions, the NDC Synthesis Report, showing nations must redouble efforts and submit stronger, more ambitious national climate action plans in 2021 if they’re to achieve the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global temperature rise by 2°C—ideally 1.5°C—by the end …
Because of the international community’s delay in cutting carbon emissions, some degree of reliance on carbon dioxide removal (CDR) options is now inevitable to achieve the Paris Agreement’s long-term temperature goal. This report seeks to answer questions regarding implementation of CDR options at scale. Can the sustainability challenges, risks and …
The purpose of this report is to provide development practitioners and government officials with an understanding of the context and key design features of climate budget tagging initiatives. It is based on a review of 18 climate budgeting tagging methodologies as well as key informant interviews with practitioners during 2020. …
This paper is based on analytical work previously conducted by NewClimate Institute, Öko-Institut, Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting Co., Ltd., and IGES. The transition of certified emission reductions (CERs) issued under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) for use by Parties towards their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) is a key outstanding …
This report analyses how the role of sustainable development can be strengthened in the process of further designing the mechanisms under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. The paper reflects on the experience with sustainable development in past and current market mechanisms and describes to what extent countries agreed on …
This report provides an update on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation Plus (REDD+) forest reference (emission) levels (FREL/FRLs) and REDD+ results submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and relevant developments under the Green Climate Fund concerning REDD+ results-based payments. It illustrates the choices countries …
As biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation continue largely unabated, it is becoming critical to strengthen nature-based solutions in national climate strategies, including Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Long-Term Low-Emission Development Strategies (LT-LEDS) under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). With the upcoming COP15 of the UN Convention on …
While South Africa is recognised as a strong voice in climate change negotiations, it is certainly not the most powerful country. As such, South Africa has had a difficult balancing act to play in protecting its interests. Its approach, which has mirrored its international diplomacy more generally, has been to …
Climate change affects all aspects of human life and life on the planet. Because nearly all human activities contribute to it, climate change is interconnected with many other global challenges and the responses to them. Cooperation between the secretariat, international organizations and other stakeholders ensures common direction, increases the efficiency …
This policy brief was prepared following the momentous UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP25) outcome in which Parties adopted a two-year workplan for the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples’ Platform (LCIPP). The adoption of the workplan recognizes the important role and contribution of indigenous peoples as partners and agents for …
The Government of Rwanda has announced an ambitious climate action agenda that features a 38% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions compared to business as usual by 2030, equivalent to an estimated mitigation of up to 4.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). The climate action plan, known officially as …
This report identifies actions, within and taken by developing countries, in response to climate hazards that lead to enhancement of adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience, and a reduction in vulnerability. It is based on a review of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), National Communications, other relevant (workshop) reports …
