The latest report from UN Climate Change underscores an urgent need for nations to strengthen their climate commitments, warning that current climate plans are drastically insufficient to prevent devastating global warming.
The report, based on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted by countries worldwide, projects that even if fully implemented, these plans would see emissions at 51.5 gigatonnes of CO2 equivalent by 2030—only a 2.6 percent reduction from 2019 levels.
Falling far short of the 43% reduction needed to limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2030, it frustrates a target scientists set to avoid the worst climate impacts.
As per the report, greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 43 percent by 2030 and 60 percent by 2035 compared to 2019 levels to maintain a safe climate trajectory. With current policies falling short, UN Climate Change warns that emissions at projected levels would spell a guaranteed disaster for humanity, affecting economies, livelihoods, and ecosystems across every nation.
The findings, though sobering, are not unexpected, as countries around the world continue to struggle with the economic, logistical, and political challenges of implementing bold climate actions.
UN Climate Change has called for a significant shift in strategy, stating that the next round of climate commitments, due in 2025, must be transformative and far more ambitious.
UN Climate Change’s Executive Director emphasized that today’s report should act as a catalyst for change, calling on all nations to end the “era of inadequacy” and adopt bolder, more effective climate plans in the upcoming NDCs. “We need every country to step up with comprehensive, economy-wide commitments that cover all greenhouse gases and aim to keep the 1.5°C target alive,” said the Executive Director.
The report outlines the importance of countries breaking down their commitments into specific sectors and gases and backing these pledges with substantial regulatory frameworks, funding, and credible implementation plans.
Additionally, it urges countries to focus on adaptation measures to shield vulnerable sectors, infrastructure, and communities from escalating climate impacts.
The upcoming COP29 in Baku is expected to be a pivotal conference in global climate efforts, as leaders convene to negotiate concrete, actionable steps for reducing emissions and scaling up climate finance for developing nations.
According to UN Climate Change, COP29 must turn the pledges from COP28’s UAE Consensus—such as tripling renewable energy, setting a global adaptation goal, and reducing fossil fuel dependency—into “real-world, real-economy results.”
In preparation, UN Climate Change has announced a series of events in the lead-up to COP29 aimed at helping countries deliver on their NDCs, with a particular focus on supporting vulnerable and developing nations facing capacity challenges.
UN Climate Change envisions the next generation of NDCs as some of the most critical policy documents of the century, marking a clear path toward a low-carbon future.
Stronger climate plans, it argues, can drive investment, economic growth, and job creation, as well as reduce pollution and health costs while enhancing energy security.
These benefits, the report suggests, will foster global prosperity and resilience, provided every country aligns with this intensified climate commitment.
With the stakes higher than ever, the message from UN Climate Change is clear: the world’s climate battle must now move from ambition to action, or face a future of escalating disasters and destabilization.
