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Adopted in Paris on 12thDecember 2015, at the conclusion of the 21stsession of the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). UNFCCC was adopted in New-York on 9 May 1992 and came into force on 21 March 1994. It has 197 Parties, including the United States. Note that the Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC, which entered into force on 16thFebruary 2005 and has 192 Parties, was signed but not ratified by the US. Note also that the Paris Agreement is the “successor” of the Kyoto Protocol.
The Paris Agreement came into force on 4thNovember 2016. It has 194 signatories and, at this point, 15 March 2017, 134 Parties.The US is one of these Parties. It “accepted”[1] the Agreement on 3d September 2016, the same day than China, which was a deliberate and highly politically and symbolically significant gesture given the fact that an accord between the two countries (that are also the two main sources of ….) prior to the Paris Conference had been decisive for the positive conclusion of this Conference.
Note that among the “main” countries, only the Russian Federation is not (not yet?) a partyto the Paris Agreement.India is a party, but with a “declaration” attached emphasizing that India’s compliance with the provisions of the Agreement are contingent upon a number of conditions including financial aid, transfers of technologies and others forms of assistance of the international community. Among the oil exporters, Iran, Iraq, Kowait are not parties, but Saudi Arabia is.
Note also that the European Union is a party.Although not a member of the UN (observer) it has “supranational” powers over its members, notably on environmental matters, as well as on trade, agriculture and a few other domains.
Main provisions of the Agreement(brief summary)
Under “Mitigation”, the reduction of gas emissions, the following was agreed:
- Goal of keeping the increase in global temperature this century to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
- Aim to limit the increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius, since this would significantly reduce risks and the impact of climate change.
- Need for global emissions to peak as soon as possible, recognizing that this will take longer for developing countries.
- Rapid reductions thereafter in accordance with the best available science.
Before, during and after the Conference countries submitted their Nationally Determined Contributions” (NDCs), which are to be updated regularly. At this point (March 2017), the Secretariat of the UNFCCC has received 129 NDCs from Parties to the Paris Agreement, including China, the European Union and most of its Member States, India, Japan and the USA (on 3 September 2016, again the same date as China). These NDCs are precise documents of about 10 pages. They are recorded in a public registry maintained by the Secretariat. As an example, the NDC from the United States says the following in its second paragraph: “The United States intends to achieve an economy-wide target of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 26-28 percent below its 2005 level in 2025 and to make best efforts to reduce its emissions by 28 percent”. Later, it indicates that “this target is part of a longer range, collective effort to transition to a low-carbon global economy as rapidly as possible”. The NDC from the European Union states that “the European Union and its member states are committed to a binding target of an at least 40 per cent domestic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 1990”.
At present, the sum of these national plans is still insufficient to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. In its most recent resolution on the subject, on 21 December 2016, the General Assembly of the United Nations stated the following: “…Expresses profound alarm that the emissions of greenhouse gases continue to rise globally, remains deeply concerned that all countries, particularly developing countries, are vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change and are already experiencing an increase in such impacts, including persistent droughts, extreme weather events, land degradation, sea level rise, coastal erosion and ocean acidification, further threatening food security, efforts to eradicate poverty (…)” (A/RES/71/228, Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankind, operative paragraph 1).
Under “Adaptation” to the already unavoidable global warming, governments agreed:
- Strengthening societies abilities to deal with the impacts of climate change.
- Provide continued and enhanced international support for adaptation to developing countries.
- Mobilize US$ 100 billion per year until 2025 when a new collective goal will be set. On financing see also the Green Climate Fund; and see the Global Environment Facility.
The Agreement also provides for “a new technology framework”, an “enhanced capacity building framework” and an “enhanced transparency of action and support”.
All countries will report regularly on their implementation effort.
The First Session of the Conference of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA1) took place in Marrakech, Morocco, on 15-18 November 2016. It adopted the Marrakech Action Proclamation.
In 2018, Parties will take stock of their collective efforts.
A global stock-take will be done every five years (the first in 2020).
Although not formerly a treaty, the Paris Agreement has strong in-built mechanisms and processes that will at least expose the countries that might be tempted to ignore or lower their commitments. And one can hope, even expect that national and international organizations of the civil society, including independent scientific authorities, and including religious and spiritual leaders, will continue to exert pressure on public authorities and corporations, without which local efforts will remain tragically insufficient to halt and reverse the damages that humankind is inflicting to Mother Earth.
The Secretariat of the UNFCCC, which is also the Secretariat responsible for the follow-up of the Paris Agreement is located in Bonn, Germany. It has a staff of about 500 persons. Its Executive Secretary is Patricia Espinosa Cantellano, from Mexico, who took office on 18 July 2016.
HARMONY WITH NATURE IN THE WORK OF THE UNITED NATIONS
In April 2009 the General Assembly of the United Nations decided that International Mother Earth Day ought to be celebrated every year on the 22d of April.
In December of the same year, the Assembly adopted a resolution entitled Harmony with Nature.
Every year since 2010 , on the 22d of April, the Assembly has a debate on Harmony with Nature, generally in the form of a dialogue of a panel of “experts” with delegates and representatives of organizations of the civil society. In 2016, this debate took the form of “an open virtual dialogue” organized over period of several months by the Secretariat of the United Nations (Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Division on Sustainable Development).
Also every year, since 2009, the General Assembly has in its Agenda a sub-item entitled Harmony with Nature in the item Sustainable Development. This item has regularly more than ten sub-items. The debate on this sub-item is based on a Report of the Secretary General, prepared by the Secretariat.
Following such debate, a draft resolution is tabled by delegations, negotiated, and adopted first by a Committee of the Assembly (the Second Committee, dealing with economic, social and environmental issues) and then by the Assembly meeting in “plenary”. It is important to note that the great majority of the resolutions of the General Assembly of the United Nations, as well as those of the Economic and Social Council, are adopted by consensus. This is the practice since the mid-1980s and the initial measures of what is known as “the reform” of the Organization.
The most recent resolution on Harmony with Nature was adopted on 21stDecember 2016: A/RES/71/232. It is a three pages document, with “preambular” and “operative” paragraphs.
Excerps:
Recognizing that planet Earth and its ecosystems are our home and that “Mother Earth” is a common expression in a number of countries, noting that some countries recognize the rights of nature in the context of the promotion of sustainable development and expressing the conviction that in order to achieve a just balance among the economic, social and environmental needs of present and future generations, it is necessary to promote harmony with nature
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Recognizing that a number of countries consider Mother Earth the source of all life and nourishment and that these countries consider Mother Earth and humankind to be an indivisible living community of interrelated and interdependent beings
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Reaffirming that fundamental changes in the ways societies produce and consume are indispensable for achieving global sustainable development…
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Recognizing that many ancient civilizations, indigenous peoples and indigenous cultures have a rich history of understanding the symbiotic connections between human beings and nature that fosters a mutually beneficial relationship…
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Considering that sustainable development is a holistic concept that requires the strengthening of interdisciplinary linkages in the different branches of knowledge
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Take note with appreciation of the experts’ summary report of the first virtual dialogue (…) among all experts on Earth Jurisprudence(…)
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Request the President of the Assembly to convene at its 71stsession(…) an interactive dialogue yo be held in the plenary meetings to be convened during the commemoration of the International Mother Day on 21 April 2017, with the participation of Member States, United Nations Organizations, independent experts and other stakeholders to discuss the recommendations of the experts’ summary report so as to inspire citizens and societies to reconsider how they interact with the natural world and to improve the ethical basis of the relationship between humankind and the Earth in the context of sustainable development.
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THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS FOR 2030
On 1stSeptember 2015 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted by consensus Resolution 69/315 entitled Draft outcome document for the adoption of the post-2015 sustainable development agenda. This resolution contains the text entitled Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
This is a text of 30 pages and 91 paragraphs that has a Preamble and a Declaration. In the Declaration, is a list of 17 Goals, to which are associated a number of “targets”. The 17 goals are commonly referred to as The Sustainable Development Goals for 2030.
These 17 goals range from Goal 1, End poverty in all its forms everywhere, to Goal 17, Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the globl partnership for sustainable development.
Goal 13, Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impact, was anticipating the Paris Agreement that was concluded two and half months later. The two processes of negotiation took several years and were formerly separated, although both undertaken under the aegis of the United Nations.
All the 17 Goals are presented as “closely interrelated” and, besides Goal 13, six of them address directly environmental issues: see Goals 6, 7, 11, 12,14, 15.
Goal 12 is: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns. It is under this goal that appears Target 12.8: By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature.
It might be noted that the Preamble of Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development includes five short paragraphs on People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace, and Partnership. The paragraph under Prosperity reads as follows: “We are determined to ensure that all human beings can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling lives and thateconomic, social and technological progress occurs in harmony with nature” (our underlining)
The responsibility for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda is essentially left to individual countries “in partnership” with other actors on the world scene, notably corporations and organizations of the civil society, but also including academia, foundations, religious institutions mentioned in the Agenda for 2030. The United Nations has a “supporting role.”
It should also be noted that the Assembly adopted the SDGs at the end of a two-day “summit” meeting attended by a large number of Heads of State or Government, including President Obama. Their speeches are available on the UN website. Also, Pope Francis was invited to address the Assembly at the beginning of its summit meeting.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Extracts from Our Common Future, The World Commission on Environment and Development (first published in 1987)
“Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable – to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. . The concept of sustainable development does imply limits – not absolute limits but limitations imposed by the present state of technology and social organization on environmental resources and by the ability of the biosphere to absorb the effects of human activities. But technology and social organization can be both managed and improved to make way for a new era of economic growth. The Commission believes that widespread poverty is no longer inevitable(…)
Sustainable global development requires that those who are more affluent adopt life-styles within the planet’s ecological means – in their use of energy, for example (…) Sustainable development can only be pursued if population size and growth are in harmony with the changing productive potential of the ecosystem.
Yet, in the end, sustainable development is not a fixed state of harmony, but rather a process of change in which the exploitation of resourses, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development, and institutional change are made consistent with future as well as present needs. We do not pretend that the processis easy or straightforward. Painful choices have to be made, Thus, in the final analysis, sustainable development must rest on political will.
(pages 8 and 9)
[1]International agreements after their adoption and signature need to be ratified, or accepted, or approved, or acceded to by the Member States of the United Nations in order to become parts of international law. Only “treaties” need ratification by the competent national authorities, which, in most liberal democracies, are the legislative organs. International agreements other than formal “treaties”, while having a similar legal force, can be ratified but can also be “accepted” or “approved” or “acceded to”, such “steps” being usually within the purview of the executive branch of governments. Thus, the Paris Agreement was “approved” by the Obama administration without involvement of the US Senate. If the Agreement had been a Treaty, approval, by a two-third majority, with the possibility of amendments, would have been required.