The Paris Agreement cleared the final hurdle to enter into force today after the European Union submitted its instrument of ratification to the United Nations and the two thresholds of 55 countries and over 55 percent of global emissions were reached.
Scientists have known for years that global warming can exacerbate storms. But our understanding of the connection between hurricanes and climate change has evolved significantly in just the past year.
Scientists estimate that by managing the world's land more sustainably, such as by protecting forests and investing in reforestation, we could achieve up to 37 percent of emissions reductions necessary to limit the global rise in temperature to 2 degrees Celsius by 2030.
Talks in Bangkok, meant to set the stage for COP24, made some progress—and laid bare the many issues that negotiators must find the will to resolve for a successful 2018 COP in Katowice, Poland.
This week's Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco aims to highlight bright spots and spur momentum on international climate action. And, to be sure, bright spots can be seen—you just need to know where to look for them.
To prevent the worst impacts of climate change, we'll need to not just reduce emissions, but actually remove some carbon dioxide from the sky.
Countries are joining the restoration movement, and especially the Bonn Challenge. But few have yet aligned their restoration and climate commitments. Doing so would make the planet greener—and the air cleaner—faster.
New research finds that ambitious climate action could yield a direct economic gain of $26 trillion (cumulative) by 2030. It could also generate more than 65 million new low-carbon jobs in 2030—equivalent to the entire workforces of the UK and Egypt combined—and avoid more than 700,000 premature deaths from air pollution.
The deadline for finalizing the implementing guidelines of the Paris Agreement is less than four months away. Negotiators are heading to a special interim meeting in Bangkok to speed progress.