According to the United Nations’ annual Emissions Gap report on the path of climate warming, the present climate policies will result in global temperature increase of over 3°C by the end of the century. This projection is on the contrary far from the goal of 1.5°C set by the Paris Agreement in 2015. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that the situation is urgent, and it is up to the leaders of the countries to either fill the emissions gap or prepare for climate disaster.
Implication arising from record emissions – Need for urgent action
Greenhouse gas emissions around the world totalled to 57.1 gigatonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2023, up from 56.3 gigatonnes in the previous year, a 1.3% increase. In the current trend, the temperatures are expected to increase between 2.6 °C and 2.8 °C by 2100 even with commitments towards future ambition. The continuous upward trajectory in emissions especially among the G20 countries has therefore casted aspersions on the sincerity of parties to deliver the 2030 climate goals.
The planet has already warmed by about 1.3°C above the level that existed in a time before industrialization. Under this context, the governments of nations are faced with the rather difficult and herculean task of achieving significant cuts in their emission levels to prevent further warming which experts have now suggested is well near impossible to attain the 1.5°C goal.
COP29: Critical Turning Point for Climate Change
The next meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) in Azerbaijan is an opportunity for countries to build up their commitment to the post-carbon economy even more. The report also states that per country, co2 emissions should be reduced to 42% by 2030 and to 57% by 2035 in order to have a last sliver of hope that global warming can be held to 1.5°C.
According to UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen, they want countries to enhance their NDCs due on February 2025, during the Baku talks. This remains the core emphasis on the minimum endowment that each degree Celsius saved in climate change stressing on the need and extent of change required.
