18 November 2015: Drawing from the outcomes of a series of Technical Expert Meetings (TEMs) held in 2014 and 2015 under the Technical Examination Process (TEP), the UNFCCC Secretariat has published ‘Climate Action Now – A Summary for Policy Makers 2015.’ The Summary focuses on examples of solutions from around the world that hold high potential for mitigating climate change and can be implemented in the pre-2020 period.

Speaking at the launch, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres called the document “very much a solutions report,” highlighting that it contains an illustrative, but not exhaustive, list of specific examples from countries demonstrating that it is possible to implement Parties’ intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) and steer the world away from warming of 3 or 4°C above pre-industrial levels.

Solutions and best practices identified in the report are organized under six priority thematic areas that have been identified by Parties through the TEP. These areas, which present high mitigation potential, opportunities for action and various co-benefits, are: renewable energy; energy efficiency; the urban environment (including transport); carbon capture, use and storage; methane and other non-carbon dioxide (CO2) greenhouse gases (GHGs); and land use.

The report underscores the role of national and international cooperative action, as well as non-State actors, and how effective policies related to these themes can advance goals in 15 other critical economic, social and environmental areas.

In addition to presenting key messages for policymakers, the Summary also contains chapters on the scientific and policy context for climate action, the power of international cooperation and the path towards greater ambition and action through 2020 and beyond. [UNFCCC Press Release, 17 November 2015] [UNFCCC Press Release, 18 November 2015] [Publication Webpage] [Publication: Climate Action Now – A Summary for Policy Makers 2015] [UNFCCC Press Conference Webcast Recording]