The climate emergency is a direct consequence of carbon-heavy land-use and agriculture, transport, buildings and industrial processes and polluting energy sources. Without profound changes to these sectors and a drastic cut to carbon footprints, there is little hope of protecting the planet from the devastating effects of a warmer world.
Below are climate-related news and events from the United Nations and partners.
UN member States took a decisive step towards sustainable low carbon mobility with the adoption on 23 February of the Inland Transport Committee’s (ITC) Strategy on Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Inland Transport.
Transport is a large contributor to carbon emissions, accounting for some 23% of annual GHG emissions. Thus, rapid and ambitious climate action by the inland transport sector is imperative.
The strategy aims to transform the way inland transport is approached globally, and to set a medium- and long-term course towards carbon neutrality by 2050, based on the 61 United Nations legal instruments under ITC’s purview.
Read more on the global decarbonization strategy in transport.
Growing populations, urbanization and rising living standards in the 16 Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries is driving an increased demand for cooling products.
To tackle this problem, the region has formally approved harmonized regional Minimum Energy Performance Standards for these products and they have been officially disseminated to the member states for the commencement of national implementation.
The projected impact of these standards is substantial, with an estimated electricity saving of nearly 8 TWh by 2040, almost equivalent to the output of four large (500 MW) power plants and a reduction of CO2 emissions by 6.5 million tonnes. Consumers are anticipated to save approximately US$840 million annually on their electricity bills.
Along with being one of Pakistan’s largest libraries, Raziuddin Siddiqi Memorial Library is unique for another reason: on entering the building one won’t hear the tell-tale flicker of fluorescent lights.
That is because the library has replaced all 103 of the fluorescent tubes on its ground floor with energy-efficient light-emitting-diodes (LEDs), part of a complete overhaul of its lighting system. The LEDs use around one-quarter the power of the library’s old setup and provide better illumination.
The library lighting overhaul was part of a larger project supported by the UNEP, the Global Environment Facility and the Pakistan National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority.
Delegates will gather for the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6), the world’s top decision-making body on the environment from 26 February to 1 March 2024 in Nairobi, Kenya.
The assembly brings together 193 Member States, intergovernmental organizations, the broader UN system, civil society groups, the scientific community and the private sector to shape global environmental policy.
Delegates are expected to discuss how multilateralism can help tackle the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste.
On the first ever International Day of Clean Energy, explore how UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre is driving impactful change in the realm of clean energy, focusing on two initiatives targeting local action and some of the world’s most vulnerable people.
Energy poverty among displaced populations is a major challenge leading to deforestation, relatively high emissions and a range of risks to human life and health. The Solar-Electric Cooking Partnership for Displacement Contexts (SOLCO) aims to transition more than 250,000 households to solar-electric cooking by 2027, leveraging a minimum of $100 million in of private and public funding and finance.
In Argentina, municipal buildings are being renovated to improve energy efficiency and local budgets as part of a broader initiative, designed to enhance energy efficiency. The renovations will deliver substantial energy savings ranging between 45% and 56%.
Technology plays a fundamental role in galvanizing climate action and building a greener and more sustainable future. Technology is also a foundational means of implementation to deliver the unprecedented social and economic transitions that are needed to keep the goal of holding the global average temperature rise to a maximum of 1.5°C alive.
Explore the latest developments in climate technology.
With the annual average global temperature fast approaching the critical threshold of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, 2023 officially smashed the global temperature record, the UN weather agency, World Meteorological Organization (WMO), confirmed on 12 January 2024.
“Humanity’s actions are scorching the Earth. 2023 was a mere preview of the catastrophic future that awaits if we don’t act now. We must respond to record-breaking temperature rises with path-breaking action,” UN chief António Guterres said in response to the latest data.
