In this “UN Special” series, we explore the actions and achievements of the various organizations of the United Nations. Throughout the series, readers will have the opportunity to learn how these agencies work collaboratively, tackling global challenges and promoting peace, social justice and environmental sustainability. From promoting gender equality to preserving the environment, from finding clean energy sources to spreading global education, the series showcases the crucial roles played by these bodies in building a more prosperous and equitable future for all nations and communities.

O IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) was established in 1988 by the United Nations Environment Program (UN Environment) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Its main purpose is to provide regular scientific assessments of climate change, its implications and potential future risks, as well as to propose adaptation and mitigation options to policymakers.

IPCC assessments play a key role in determining the current state of scientific knowledge on climate change. They identify areas where there is consensus among the scientific community on issues related to climate change, as well as areas that require further research. These reports are prepared and reviewed in several stages, thus ensuring the necessary objectivity and transparency.

Importantly, the IPCC does not conduct its own research, but rather draws on a comprehensive review and synthesis of existing research by expert scientists. As such, IPCC reports are considered neutral, relevant to policy-making but not prescriptive in terms of specific actions to be taken.

IPCC assessment reports play a crucial role in international negotiations on climate change. They provide a solid and reliable scientific basis on which to base policy decisions and strategies for tackling climate change. With 195 member countries, the IPCC has become a global forum for scientific collaboration and the promotion of coordinated and effective climate action.

Since its inception, the IPCC has been recognized as a leading scientific authority on climate change. The General Assembly of the United Nations, in the same year of its foundation, endorsed the action of the WMO and the UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) by jointly establishing the IPCC. This endorsement reinforces the importance and international recognition of the IPCC's contribution to understanding and responding to climate change.

In this context, climate adaptation is a key component in addressing climate change and its consequences. With global temperatures rising and the impacts becoming more evident, the need to adapt is crucial to face the challenges posed by these changes.

Climate adaptation refers to the actions and measures taken to reduce vulnerability and increase the resilience of natural and human systems to the impacts of climate change. It is an ongoing process that involves identifying climate risks, assessing vulnerabilities and implementing strategies to minimize damage and exploit opportunities.

The importance of climate adaptation lies in protecting lives, livelihoods and ecosystems. By adopting adaptive approaches, you reduce the risks and damage caused by extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, severe storms and rising sea levels. This is especially relevant for more vulnerable communities, which tend to be most impacted by climate change.

Furthermore, climate adaptation is crucial to ensuring food, water and energy security. With changing weather patterns, it is essential to implement sustainable agricultural practices, manage water resources efficiently and diversify energy sources. These actions contribute to ensuring access to food, drinking water and energy, even in the face of adverse weather conditions.

Adaptation also plays an important role in preserving biodiversity and ecosystems. By protecting natural habitats, restoring degraded ecosystems and promoting the conservation of biological diversity, we strengthen the resilience of natural systems and mitigate the impacts of climate change. This is fundamental for maintaining the health of ecosystems, which are essential for the functioning of the planet and for human well-being.

In addition to direct benefits, climate adaptation also generates economic opportunities. Therefore, implementing adaptive measures such as climate-resilient infrastructure, sustainable technologies and responsible business practices drive innovation and job creation, promoting sustainable economic growth.

In addition, the UN plays a key role in driving global adaptation action through its international processes and agreements. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement provide the legal and policy framework for global cooperation in tackling climate change, including adaptation.

The UNFCCC serves as a platform for negotiation and dialogue among countries on adaptation-related issues. Conferences of the Parties (COPs) are held annually to review progress, make policy decisions and set guidelines for implementing climate commitments.

The COP 26 in Glasgow was particularly relevant for adaptation as it established the Glasgow-Sharm el-Sheikh program of work on the Global Adaptation Goal (GlaSS). This program brings governments together to discuss and detail the elements of a global adaptation goal, as well as the measures to measure and achieve that goal.

GlaSS is leading the discussion on defining and implementing a global adaptation goal, providing clarity and direction to global efforts. Through workshops and consultations, governments are sharing experiences, good practices and lessons learned on adaptation, promoting collaboration and knowledge exchange.

Furthermore, the UN plays a crucial role in mobilizing financial resources for adaptation. The Green Climate Fund, established by the UNFCCC, is one of the main sources of financing for adaptation actions in developing countries. Through the Fund, countries can access resources to implement adaptation projects and programs, strengthening their climate resilience.

The UN also promotes cooperation between countries, encouraging the exchange of technologies, training and technical assistance for adaptation. Through initiatives such as the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), resources and technical support are provided to enable countries to implement adaptation measures.

However, despite UN efforts, it is important to highlight that global adaptation action still faces significant challenges. The lack of adequate funding, the lack of technical capacity and the complexity of decision-making processes are some of the obstacles to be overcome. It is therefore critical to continue to strengthen and enhance UN efforts to accelerate adaptation action globally, ensuring the most vulnerable communities are protected from the impacts of climate change and building a more resilient future.

In addition, the global adaptation target is also key to ensuring climate equity and justice.

The global adaptation target is important because it allows learning and sharing knowledge about best practices and adaptation strategies. As countries implement adaptation measures and assess their effectiveness, they share this information with other countries, promoting international cooperation and accelerating global progress.

The global goal of adaptation also plays an essential role in building a unified global response to climate change. By setting clear targets and indicators, a sense of urgency and responsibility for adaptation is created. This encourages countries to step up their efforts and allocate adequate resources to address the challenges of climate change.

Challenges and Opportunities for a Global Response to Climate Change

Human activities have played a significant role in the global warming and climate changes that we are currently witnessing. The continuous emission of greenhouse gases has contributed to the increase in the global average surface temperature, which has already exceeded 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels in the period from 2011 to 2020.

During the last decade (2010-2019), global greenhouse gas emissions have continued to rise, driven by unsustainable energy use, changes in land use, lifestyles and consumption and production patterns. Uneven and continuous emissions occur both between regions and within countries and individuals. This trend is worrying, as it indicates the urgent need to reduce emissions and adopt more sustainable practices.

The effects of man-made climate change are already visible around the world, manifesting themselves in a variety of extreme weather conditions. Rising temperatures, heavy rainfall, prolonged droughts and extreme weather events are negatively affecting various regions of the globe. These climate changes have widespread adverse impacts, affecting food security, water availability, human health, economies and society as a whole. In addition, there are also nature-related losses and damage to biodiversity.

It is important to emphasize that vulnerable communities are the most affected by climate change. Often, these communities have historically contributed less to greenhouse gas emissions, but suffer disproportionately from the impacts of climate change. This highlights the need for a fair and equitable approach in addressing these challenges, ensuring that the most vulnerable communities receive adequate support to adapt and become more resilient.

Given this scenario, it is essential to take urgent measures to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the impact of climate change. It is necessary to promote the transition to clean and renewable energy sources, adopt sustainable agricultural practices, conserve ecosystems and develop effective adaptation strategies. In addition, it is important to strengthen international cooperation and establish policies and agreements that promote climate action globally.

International climate agreements have played a crucial role in boosting efforts to address climate change around the world. These agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, set targets and commitments for countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

One of the positive consequences of these agreements is increased national ambitions for climate action. Countries have recognized the urgency and importance of tackling climate change and have raised their emission reduction targets. This is essential to achieving the goals set out in the Paris Agreement and limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

Public awareness has also played a key role in this process. As more people become aware of the impacts of climate change and the need for action, there is increasing pressure on governments and businesses to act more sustainably. Public opinion is demanding concrete measures to address climate change, which is driving governance efforts at many levels.

Mitigation policies have shown positive results, contributing to the reduction of global energy and carbon intensity. Many countries have managed to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions for more than a decade by implementing low-emission technologies in key sectors such as energy, buildings, transport and industry. These technologies are becoming increasingly accessible, offering clean and sustainable energy options.

In addition, adaptation planning and implementation efforts have also shown significant progress. Effective adaptation options are being developed and implemented, reducing climate risks and contributing to sustainable development. Adaptation is essential to ensure the resilience of communities and ecosystems to the impacts of climate change.

However, despite advances, global funding for mitigation and adaptation still falls short of what is needed. While funding for climate action has increased since the 2014 IPCC Assessment Report (AR5), increased investments are still needed to meet the targets set. Adequate funding is essential to support mitigation and adaptation actions in developing countries, which often face greater challenges in dealing with climate change.

As such, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement play key roles in driving global climate ambition and in the development of climate policies at various levels of governance.

The Kyoto Protocol, established by the UNFCCC in 1997, was an important milestone in the fight against climate change. He set emission reduction targets for developed countries and introduced mechanisms such as carbon markets. The Protocol has contributed to emission reductions in some countries and has been instrumental in building national and international capacity for greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting, accounting and the implementation of emissions markets.

However, it was with the Paris Agreement that global climate action reached a new level. Adopted in 2015 under the UNFCCC, the Paris Agreement has almost universal participation of countries. It provided a legal and policy framework for global cooperation to combat climate change.

One of the key features of the Paris Agreement is Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). These are individual country targets and commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address the impacts of climate change. NDCs require countries to articulate their priorities and ambitions around climate action. These targets cover both mitigation, with efforts to reduce emissions, and adaptation, with measures to increase resilience and capacity to deal with the impacts of climate change.

In addition, the Paris Agreement also emphasizes the importance of transparency in climate action and support for developing countries. It promotes improved transparency in the implementation of climate action, ensuring that countries are held accountable for their commitments. The Agreement also recognizes the need for financial and technological support for developing countries in order to strengthen their capacities to face climate change.

By supporting rising levels of national ambition and encouraging the development and implementation of climate policies at various levels of governance, the UNFCCC, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement have driven efforts to tackle climate change around the world. These agreements are fundamental for international cooperation, setting goals and guidelines for climate action and providing a framework for global coordination in the fight against climate change.

The Path to Limiting Global Warming with Net Zero Emissions

Understanding net zero CO2 and net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is critical to limiting man-made global warming to a specific level. This requires not only reducing CO2 emissions, but also strong reductions in other greenhouse gas emissions.

Achieving net zero CO2 emissions means that carbon dioxide emissions are completely balanced by durably stored CO2 removals. On the other hand, achieving net zero GHG emissions involves balancing emissions of all greenhouse gases, such as methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), with CO2 removals. However, some non-CO2 emissions, especially those from agriculture, can be more challenging to completely eliminate.

The possibility of achieving net zero CO2 or GHG emissions globally does not depend on all sectors and regions reaching net zero, but rather on some sectors offsetting the net emissions of others. This means that it is possible for some sectors or regions to continue to emit GHGs, as long as other sectors or regions reach negative net emissions.

However, achieving net zero or negative emissions depends on several factors, including the potential for reducing GHG emissions, the ability to remove carbon dioxide, associated costs, and the policy mechanisms available to balance emissions and removals across sectors and sectors. countries.

It is important to consider equity and capacity when adopting and implementing net zero emissions targets by countries and regions. Zero net path formulations should take into account clarity of scope, action plans, and fairness. Furthermore, achieving these goals requires policies, institutions and structures to monitor progress.

It is important to emphasize that the distribution of mitigation efforts can be uneven, and the incorporation of equity principles can change the time required for countries to reach net zero emissions. The Paris Agreement recognizes that peak emissions will occur later in developing countries compared to developed countries, taking into account their specific circumstances and capabilities.

Many countries around the world are demonstrating their intention to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions or net zero carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by mid-century. More than 100 countries have adopted, announced or are discussing net zero emissions commitments, covering more than two-thirds of global GHG emissions. In addition, a growing number of cities are setting climate targets, including net zero GHG targets. Companies and institutions have also announced net zero emissions targets in recent years. However, despite these advances, there are still significant challenges to be faced.

Mitigation strategies face a number of implementation challenges, including technology risks, scalability, and cost. Furthermore, most mitigation options face institutional barriers that need to be overcome to allow their large-scale application. Current development paths can create spatial, economic and social obstacles to accelerated implementation of mitigation at all scales. Addressing these barriers is necessary to move towards net zero emissions targets.

Modeled pathways to achieving net zero carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions followed by net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions vary depending on a number of variables, including desired climate outcomes, mitigation strategies, and gases targeted. Importantly, net zero CO2 emissions are achieved at different times depending on these factors.

On paths that limit global warming to 1.5°C, over 50% of the modeled scenarios indicate that net zero CO2 emissions can be achieved by the early 2050s, provided there is no or limited overshoot of this threshold. On the other hand, on paths that limit global warming to 2°C, over 67% of the modeled scenarios indicate that net zero CO2 emissions can be achieved by the early 2070s.

Importantly, even in warming paths limited to 2°C or less, non-CO2 GHG emissions are significantly reduced. However, there is a residual amount of methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and fluorinated gases (F gases) emissions, which add up to about 8 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (GtCO2eq) per year. These residual emissions need to be offset by net negative CO2 emissions to achieve the goal of net zero GHG emissions.

It is therefore important to recognize that achieving net zero CO2 emissions will occur before achieving net zero GHG emissions. To deal with these residual GHG emissions, it is necessary to implement more robust mitigation measures, such as reducing methane emissions from sectors such as agriculture and energy, in addition to measures to control other greenhouse gases. In addition, it is essential to invest in technologies to remove CO2 from the atmosphere to achieve net negative emissions and offset residual GHG emissions.

Accelerated implementation of adaptation measures is critical to improving the well-being of communities and reducing loss and damage caused by climate change, especially for vulnerable populations. By acting quickly to build resilience and adapt to the impacts of climate change, we mitigate adverse effects and protect people's well-being.

In addition, deep, rapid and sustained mitigation actions are essential to reduce future adaptation costs and minimize loss and damage. By significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions, global warming and associated impacts are limited. This not only lessens the need for large-scale adaptation, but also increases the co-benefits of sustainable development, such as improved air quality, energy security and the creation of green jobs.

Also, rapid mitigation actions avoid blocking emission sources and reduce the continued dependence on assets that are incompatible with a low-carbon economy. By taking action now to reduce emissions, you avoid investments in high-carbon infrastructure that would become stranded assets in the future.

Importantly, these short-term actions may require higher initial investments and may cause disruptive changes in certain sectors and industries. However, these changes can be facilitated by a series of favorable conditions, such as financial incentives, adequate policies and government support.

To achieve effective climate action, strong political commitment, well-coordinated multi-level governance and robust institutional frameworks, laws, policies and strategies are essential. It is necessary to set clear objectives, secure adequate funding and develop appropriate financial tools. In addition, coordination across different policy domains and the promotion of inclusive governance processes are key.

Over the years, many policy instruments for climate mitigation and adaptation have been successfully implemented in many countries. These instruments have demonstrated the ability to support significant emission reductions and increase climate resilience when scaled up and applied on a large scale, taking into account the specific circumstances of each nation.

Adaptation and mitigation actions benefit from a wide range of knowledge. This includes scientific knowledge about climate change and its impacts, technical knowledge about low-carbon technologies and adaptation practices, and local knowledge of affected communities. Stakeholder engagement, including local communities, indigenous peoples, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and academia, is crucial to ensuring that climate policies and actions are evidence-based, participatory and responsive to the needs and concerns of those affected.

In this way, it is also essential to strengthen institutional capacity and promote international cooperation. This involves sharing good practices, building technical and scientific capacities, transferring technology and accessing adequate funding to support the implementation of climate action.