Paris Agreements

The Paris Agreement is an international treaty reached during the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) in 2015, and is considered one of the most significant COPs for the ambitious objectives set to combat global warming. In particular, as part of this conference, 195 countries signed an agreement pledging to keep the increase in global temperature well below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels, with the aim of further limiting it to 1.5°C.

Before the signing of the Paris Agreement, the United Nations Convention on climate change (UNFCCC) had set as its objective to limit the increase in global temperature to less than 2°C. However, the scientific research reported in the IPCC reports has shown that an increase in temperature of 2°C would entail significant risks for many regions of the world, especially for small island states and developing countries.

To deepen our understanding of the impacts of an increase of 1.5°C and of the mitigation strategies, the UNFCCC asked the IPCC to prepare the 2018 Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C. This report provided the first comprehensive assessment of mitigation paths and transitions in the energy system that are compatible with the heating limit of 1.5°C established byParis Agreement.

THEArticle 4.1 of the Paris Agreement Imposes an arrest of global emissions and the consequent start of the reduction to net zero emissions. This process of Decarbonization must be completed by 2050, in order to limit environmental damage and ensure a sustainable future for humanity.

To achieve the objectives of the Paris Agreement, the NDC, known as Determined National Contributions, which represent the action plans of the EU member states. These outline each country's efforts to reduce national emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change. The Agreement requires all parties to communicate their climate actions starting in 2020, with a review scheduled every five years through the Global Stocktake (GST).

The first cycle of GST was launched in 2021 during the COP26 in Glasgow and ended in June 2023, coinciding with the start of the technical evaluation process during the interim negotiations. At the end of 2023, during the COP28 in the Arab Emirates, reports have been published that summarize the analysis carried out on all areas of action of the GST (mitigation, adaptation, finance, losses and damages). These reports will provide recommendations to member states on what actions to take in the coming years.