At COP28, the United Nations will conduct its first ever Global Stocktake (GST) – the results of a two-year process to tell us how far we’ve come in the fight against climate change. But this will not be just another global assessment showing how off track we are. The Global Stocktake is also meant to be a “global accelerator” – directing governments, cities, businesses and advocates to take transformative action to slash global emissions, boost climate finance and increase resilience.

Through consultations and discussions with negotiators, Party representatives, and non-state actors, including civil society organizations and think tanks, this expert note presents suggestions for the for the substantive content of the GST decision (and/or declaration) which will culminate at COP28 in December 2023. The authors outline key areas which can be addressed in response to the Global Stocktake’s findings to drive the transformative change the world needs to see.

Key Findings:

Crucially, the response to the Global Stocktake should include an unequivocal signal that countries will submit enhanced NDCs with ambitious 2030 and 2035 climate targets well ahead of COP30. Finance to enable the development and implementation of these NDCs will be essential.

The Global Stocktake can also prompt specific actions to accelerate transformative climate action and support in high-impact areas. These include:

  1. Rapidly and equitably shifting away from fossil fuels and scaling up renewables.
  2. Transforming food systems, agriculture, forestry and land-use to bolster food security, enhance resilience and equitably reduce emissions.
  3. Rapidly reducing transport emissions and shifting to fossil fuel-free transport.
  4. Ramping up finance and other support for adaptation and providing new and additional funds to address loss and damage – while simplifying access to these funds and effectively channeling resources to the local level.
  5. Delivering on climate finance commitments and urgently shifting all global financial flows at the scale needed to enable net-zero emissions and climate-resilient development.

 

Thumbnail image by DENNIS SCHROEDER / NREL