NEW YORK – Facing a “deepening planetary emergency” and “on a reckless path toward catastrophic climate change,” the world needs never-before-seen levels of collective wisdom, political courage, and accountability to change course, says a new report by the Climate Governance Commission. The report, “Governing Our Planetary Emergency,” presents fifteen actions – ten near-term proposals to be achieved in the next one-to-three years, and five medium-term actions for the next three-to-five years – that must be taken across multilateral institutions, national governments, business, and international law, to set the world on a viable course.
The Climate Governance Commission, chaired by former President of Ireland and Chair of The Elders Mary Robinson; President of the 73rd UN General Assembly María Fernanda Espinosa; and Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research Dr. Johan Rockström, proposes a climate to-do list in this new report, which was released just days before tens of thousands are expected in Dubai for the start of COP28, the annual UN climate conference.
Among the near-term recommendations proposed by the Commission of experts:
– Urgent improvements of climate COPs for delivery, action, and accountability to focus, reconfigure, and streamline the annual conference, currently expected to attract more than 70,000 delegates in its 28th year. The Commission also calls for the adoption of proven mediation mechanisms and majority/supermajority voting approaches to avoid logjams and prevent “a watered-down, least common denominator dynamic.”
– The declaration of a “planetary emergency” by the UN General Assembly at next year’s Summit of the Future, as well as the activation of an Emergency Platform, elaborating on a proposal by the UN Secretary-General.
– A Grand Bargain among the “Big Four” GHG-emitting nations (China, the U.S., India, and the EU), joined by other high-emission nations. The Commission calls for the linking, improvement, and – where needed – establishment of institutional infrastructures to evaluate the climate performance of goods and companies, and for the responsible engagement by and accountability of fossil fuel companies, executives, and associations.– Renewed efforts to bridge the great climate finance divide, including through debt forgiveness, reforms to multilateral development banks, and balanced global carbon taxes and tariffs to fund climate mitigation and adaptation in low and middle-income countries.
“We stand at the cusp of a green energy transformation, poised to shape a fairer, cleaner, healthier future. The means to finance the climate action we need to see are within reach, but it is good governance that holds the key,” said Commission co-chair and report co-author Mary Robinson.
The report provides a sobering look at the state of planetary emergency nearly a decade since the adoption of the Paris Agreement on climate change. In their foreword, Rockström, Robinson, and Espinosa warn that humankind is on a dangerous trajectory of intense suffering and heightened inequality, set on a “reckless path towards runaway, catastrophic climate change,” having already over-shot six of nine science-based planetary boundaries.
“We are in for a bumpy ride. Just how bumpy depends on our ability to safeguard the buffering capacity of our planet,” said report co-author Johan Rockström. “There’s no safe climate without protecting nature on land and in the ocean, reducing fertilizer run-off and pollution, and ensuring a robust hydrological cycle.”
Still, the report authors remain hopeful that an “all-of-society emergency effort” can adopt their fifteen specific and near-term actions in months, not decades, to make critical reforms and engage the relevant stakeholders in building a safer and more just tomorrow.
“In the face of a deepening planetary crisis, it falls upon us to be the architects of brighter and safer societies. With bold climate and environmental governance transformations suggested in the new Climate Governance Commission report, we can build low-carbon and fairer economies…and ensure a secure, flourishing future for all,” Maria Fernanda Espinosa said. “The time to avert the climate crisis is now.”
A November 28 public launch event featuring Robinson, Rockström, and Espinosa will explore the findings of this report and its real-world implications, hosted by the Stimson Center as Member of the Climate Governance Commission Steering Committee and Secretariat Team. RSVP to attend this event online here.
The Governing Our Planetary Emergency report is available to view and download on the Stimson Center website