On December 12, 2015, 195 countries came together in Paris to adopt a landmark climate change deal. The Paris Agreement creates, for the first time, a long-term global framework that commits nearly every country to reducing greenhouse gas emissions to address climate change. The Agreement sets a concrete goal of limiting temperature increases to “well below” 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and pursuing efforts to meet a more ambitious goal of 1.5 degrees Celsius. Under the Agreement, all countries must establish nationally determined climate targets and report on their progress using a rigorous, standardized process of review.

NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONS, INTERNATIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY -

The cornerstone of the Agreement is the requirement that each country set a nonbinding (i.e., intended) target for itself to cut its carbon emissions. Although there is no penalty for failing to meet a target, the Agreement includes a robust transparency system that enables countries to hold each other accountable for meeting their targets. This transparency system requires countries to report on national inventories of emissions by source on a uniform basis and on progress made in implementing and achieving the targets put forward (with some flexibility for developing countries). As a further check, the Agreement establishes a comprehensive technical expert–review process that analyzes whether their reporting is in line with adopted standards.