For many people following the news, you know the Paris Climate Agreement has been a source of tension; and while you may know it is helping tackle climate change, we will be discussing exactly how the agreement plans to do that and how it came to be.
The Paris Climate Agreement came into effect on November 4, 2016 (pretty recently), with only one goal: drastically reduce carbon emissions. That’s a pretty weighty goal, seeing as most industrial nations produce a lot of carbon as byproducts from transportation, manufacturing, and everyday living. So how did the Paris Climate Agreement propose reducing these emissions? And how do they measure the success of each country?
Well firstly, the Paris Climate Agreement works well because it allows for individuality between countries. What works for Sweden isn’t going to work for Brazil, and what works for England isn’t going to work for the American Samoas. Thus the need for flexibility. To combat this problem, the Paris Climate Agreement sets no rule for what has to be done or how much has to be done. Instead, they allow each country to submit a plan for what they are going to do in the next 5 years to reduce emissions. In each 5-year cycle these countries are committed to meeting these goals, and at the end will evaluate and make a new plan for the next 5 years. These 5 year plans are known as the nationally determined contributions (or NDCs).
NDCs should include the goal the country is wishing to hit for the coming five years (in regards to reductions in carbon emissions), but should also include how they plan to reach these goals. Outlining the steps needed in order to make change is a handy tool that not only helps countries get a start, but also keeps them accountable in the long-run. Especially since countries will be working towards long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies (LT-LEDS). These are long-term goals that help provide a framework for the NDCs, and while they aren’t required, they provide a helpful plan to help determine strategy and priorities for the country.
Along with supporting individual countries in their quest to reduce carbon emissions, the Paris Climate Agreement is also a platform to encourage countries to support each other. Building a global network full of connections that can help solve financial, technological, or capacity issues is key to creating a sustainable world full of clean energy. This isn’t to say the Paris Climate Agreement is perfect. Like any creation there are flaws, and in this instance the major one is participation. There are many countries that have joined the initiative and are diligently working to become more climate neutral, but without the participation of every country, there will still be work to do.
Climate Neutral: achieving net-zero carbon dioxide emissions, this can be done by balancing emissions of carbon dioxide with its removal or by eliminating emissions altogether
Even in our own country, we have seen how politically divided individuals are on climate change, and even how divided they are about whether our own country should participate in the Paris Climate Agreement. Even with this skepticism, The Paris Climate Agreement has made some progress and continues to work towards a brighter future.
- The Edible Landscape Initiative
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