The Paris Agreement is an international treaty that focuses on addressing the adverse impacts of climate change. It was adopted in 2015 at the United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Paris, France. The main aim of the agreement is to strengthen the global response to climate change by keeping the global temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, while pursuing efforts to limit it even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius. So, which countries have joined the Paris Agreement? Let`s find out.
As of 2021, 197 countries have joined the Paris Agreement. These countries are known as Parties to the Agreement. The United States, which is one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, rejoined the Paris Agreement on February 19, 2021, under the Biden administration. The only country that has not joined the agreement is Eritrea, a small country in Africa.
Countries that have signed the agreement but have not ratified it yet include Angola, Belarus, South Sudan, and Turkey. This means that these countries have expressed their intention to join the agreement, but they have not yet fulfilled the necessary domestic legal requirements to ratify it.
The Paris Agreement is unique because it allows each country to determine its own targets and goals based on its national circumstances. This is known as the principle of “nationally determined contributions” (NDCs). Each country submits its own NDC to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat, outlining the steps they will take to reduce emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Some countries have set more ambitious targets than others. For example, Costa Rica plans to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, while China aims to peak its carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. The European Union has set a target to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. Other countries, like India and Indonesia, have set targets to increase their use of renewable energy.
In conclusion, the Paris Agreement is a landmark global agreement that aims to tackle the challenges of climate change. As of 2021, 197 countries have joined the agreement, and only one country is yet to join. Each country determines its own targets and goals based on its national circumstances, and some countries have set more ambitious targets than others. It is crucial that all countries work together to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement and prevent the worst impacts of climate change.
