Historic agreement reached at COP21
The climate agreement, which is hoped to better the initial target by limiting warming to 1.5C, was agreed by 195 nations after 48 hours of negotiations, with the accord aiming to deliver a net zero emission economy this century.
The Paris Agreement and the various pledges made during the UN Climate Conference (COP21) will aim to reduce emissions quickly, help less-developed countries adapt to climate change, strengthen the earth’s ability to recover from the impact of climate change and support nations in order to reduce carbon emissions.
The agreement also involves a “stocktake” every five years, which will judge how well countries are adopting their individual climate plans, while all countries will submit updated climate plans, called nationally determined contributions (NDCs), in the same time period.
Laurent Fabius, President of the COP 21 UN Climate change conference and French Foreign Minister, brought down the gavel on the agreement on Friday evening to a standing ovation within the conference halls at Le Bourget, Paris.
“The Paris Agreement allows each delegation and group of countries to go back home with their heads held high. Our collective effort is worth more than the sum of our individual effort. Our responsibility to history is immense,” he said.
Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General, believes the deal signals a new era of global cooperation on one of the most complex issues ever to confront humanity.
For the first time, every country in the world has pledged to curb emissions, strengthen resilience and join in common cause to take common climate action. This is a resounding success for multilateralism,” he said.
Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), states that the world leaders involved in the agreement have made history together.
“One planet, one chance to get it right and we did it in Paris. It is an agreement of conviction. It is an agreement of solidarity with the most vulnerable. It is an agreement of long-term vision, for we have to turn this agreement into an engine of safe growth,” she said.
“Successive generations will, I am sure, mark the 12 December 2015 as a date when cooperation, vision, responsibility, a shared humanity and a care for our world took centre stage.”
The agreement follows a number of pledges, initiatives and global deals made over the course of the two-week conference, including coalitions within business, industry and politics.
UK Prime Minister David Cameron believes that in striking this deal, the nations of the world have shown what unity, ambition and perseverance can do.
“Britain is already leading the way in work to cut emissions and help less developed countries cut theirs – and this global deal now means that the whole world has signed up to play its part in halting climate change. It’s a moment to remember and a huge step forward in helping to secure the future of our planet,” he said.
Energy Secretary Amber Rudd added: “We have witnessed an important step forward, with an unprecedented number of countries agreeing to a deal to limit global temperature rises and avoid the worst impacts of climate change.
“This is vital for our long-term economic and global security. This deal will ensure all countries are held to account for their climate commitments and gives a clear signal to business to invest in the low carbon transition.”
