Actualités Climate Action

Focus sur l'action climatique

L'urgence climatique est une conséquence directe de l'utilisation des terres et de l'agriculture, des transports, des bâtiments et des processus industriels à forte intensité de carbone, ainsi que des sources d'énergie polluantes. En l'absence de changements profonds dans ces secteurs et d'une réduction drastique de l'empreinte carbone, il y a peu d'espoir de protéger la planète des effets dévastateurs d'un monde plus chaud. 

Ce flux en direct vous tiendra au courant de toutes les dernières nouvelles de la Conférence des Nations Unies sur le changement climatique, connue sous le nom de 29e Conférence des Parties (COP29) à la Convention-cadre des Nations Unies sur les changements climatiques (CCNUCC), qui se tiendra à Bakou, en Azerbaïdjan. 

12 Nov 2024 13:15

New UNHCR Report highlights link between climate change, conflict and displacement

drought-stricken land
Ab Rashid/UNDP Climate

People forced to flee war, violence and persecution are increasingly finding themselves on the front line of the global climate crisis, a new report warns, exposing them to a lethal combination of threats but without the funding and support to adapt. 

The report, released today by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, in collaboration with 13 expert organisations, research institutions and refugee-led groups, shows how climate shocks are interacting with conflict, pushing those who are already in danger into even more dire situations.   

According to the report – No Escape: On the Frontlines of Climate Change, Conflict and Forced Displacement – by 2040 the number of countries facing extreme climate-related hazards is expected to rise from 3 to 65, the vast majority of which host displaced people. Similarly, most refugee settlements and camps are projected to experience twice as many days of dangerous heat by 2050. 

Watch report launch live here.  

12 Nov 2024 12:31

What are UNEP’s ‘Gap’ Reports and why are they important?

Emissions Gap Report 2024

The next two weeks will see two UNEP reports referenced a lot, both in media reports and in negotiations. These regular climate-related assessments are the Adaptation Gap Report and the Emissions Gap Report, while UNEP partners with other groups on a third, the Production Gap Report. They analyse the state of the climate and provide policymakers with a roadmap for action, often being cited by heads of state and negotiators at COPs. 

12 Nov 2024 11:34

UN Secretary-General: World must pay up or humanity will pay the price

Working in flooded fields
Pexels/Azam Khan Ronnie

UN secretary general António Guterres gave a strong speech at the World Leaders Summit today, highlighting the costs of climate inaction and emphasising that the climate crisis is here now. 

“Families running for their lives before the next hurricane strikes; Workers and pilgrims collapsing in insufferable heat; Floods tearing through communities, and tearing down infrastructure; Children going to bed hungry as droughts ravage crops. All these disasters, and more, are being supercharged by human-made climate change,” he said.

“But there is every reason to hope,” Guterres said. “It’s time to deliver and humanity is behind you.”

Guterres listed three priorities. First “emergency” emissions reductions, with the G20 countries leading. Second, protecting people from the ravages of the climate crisis, especially the most vulnerable, which will require hundreds of billions of dollars. Third, delivering the overall finance goal, which should be at least US$1tn a year and is the key task at COP29.

“Developing countries eager to act are facing many obstacles: scant public finance; raging cost of capital; crushing climate disasters; and debt servicing that soaks up funds,” he said. “Developing countries must not leave Baku empty-handed. A deal is a must.”

Read the full speech here.
 

12 Nov 2024 11:17

World leaders arrive for day two of COP29

World leaders posing
COP29

It’s the second day of COP29 with a range of events, discussions and panels on across Baku Stadium. Today is the first day of the World Leaders Climate Action Summit, which features heads of state and government. Speakers today include UK leader Keir Starmer and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey. However leaders such as Joe Biden, Xi Jinping and the EU's Ursula von der Leyen.

Events include a high-level discussion on climate finance; a ministerial dialogue on scaling up investment for tripling renewables and doubling energy efficiency; the launch of a UNHCR report on the link between climate change, conflict and displacement; an event on delivering climate action in agriculture and food systems; and the “operationalization” of the Loss and Damage Fund that was agreed upon at least year’s COP28 in Dubai. 

 

 

11 Nov 2024 18:16

What is multilateralism and why is it important?

Ever wondered how exactly international environmental agreements get signed off? Well, wonder no more as this video explains how seminal treaties like the Montreal Protocol and the Minamata Convention were born, and learn about the ongoing multilateral efforts such as the groundbreaking plastic pollution treaty. 

11 Nov 2024 16:27

World Urban Forum highlights crucial climate role cities play

City skyline
Pexels

Last week saw the 12th World Urban Forum (WUF) take place in Cairo, where the crucial role cities need to play in effective climate action was highlighted.  

Elisabeth Mrema, UNEP Deputy Executive Director, emphasized the crucial role of cities in climate action, highlighting their responsibility for more than 70 per cent of global CO2 emissions and the need for localized climate solutions.  

UNEP led more than 15 events on the topics of urban finance, climate-resilient and nature-positive cities, extreme heat, food waste, plastic pollution, and sustainable mobility. The event also saw the relaunch of the 2024 Food Waste Index Report and the 2024 State of Finance for Nature in Cities report, highlighting the importance of multilevel governance and cross-sectoral cooperation for sustainable urban development.  

UNEP-led events focused on everything from addressing funding gaps to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals to how cities can help achieve a reduction cooling-related emissions by 68 per cent by 2050, as well as the need to develop green and resilient buildings. 

11 Nov 2024 14:50

What happened at the ‘nature COP’ in Colombia?

COP16 in Cali
Duncan Moore/UNEP

COP29 is not the only COP – or conference of the parties – to take place this month, with COP16 having wrapped up in Cali, Colombia, last week. 

With its focus on biodiversity and nature restoration, the event – sometimes billed as the 'nature COP' – saw agreement reached on an expanded role of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in saving biodiversity and a groundbreaking agreement on the operationalization of a new global mechanism to share benefits from digital genetic information. 

However, an agreement could not be reached on a fund to help developing countries restore natural ecosystems.  

Read more about COP16 here.

11 Nov 2024 13:00

WMO Report: 2024 set to be hottest year on record

plumes of smoke
Pexels

2024 is on track to be the warmest year on record, with the global average near surface temperature even higher than in 2023, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).  Today saw the release of the WMO’s State of the Climate 2024 Update, which paints a stark picture of the unfolding climate crisis.  

The report reveals that 2015-2024 will be the warmest ten years on record; the loss of ice from glaciers, sea-level rise and ocean heating are accelerating; and extreme weather is wreaking havoc on communities and economies across the world. 

Read the full report here.

11 Nov 2024 11:55

COP29 has opened to calls for action

COP29 logo
UN Climate Change/Habib Samadov

Thousands of delegates, observers and members of civil society are arriving at Baku Stadium for the first day of COP29. Earlier, at the opening ceremony, Mukhtar Babayev, the summit president-elect, called the two-week event a “moment of truth for the Paris Agreement." 

The Paris Agreement goal is to keep global average temperatures 1.5C above pre-industrial average. However a report last week from the EU's climate service revealed that 2024 would be the first year to breach that target, and is "virtually certain" to be the hottest year on record.

UNFCCC head Simon Stiell highlighted the widespread effects of the climate crisis, pointing out how it “is affecting every single individual in the world in one way or another, pushing up energy bills, furthering global instability, and taking lives." 

 

11 Nov 2024 10:00

Explore UNEP’s climate action series

Students and a teacher in a classroom
Image: Kéré Architecture/Enrico Cano

UNEP works in countries around the world helping to tackle the climate crisis. From sustainable design solutions in African schools to a greenbelt project in a Mexican city, the Climate Action series features projects around the world.