Closing the trust gap over net zero commitments

AHEAD of the 27th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, in November, India has ratified its pledges to achieve net zero emissions by 2070.

Following COP26 in Glasgow last year, many other big emitter countries such as the European Union nations, Brazil, China and the United States have also raised their ambitions. Net zero means that all man-​made greenhouse gas emissions must be removed from the atmosphere through reduction measures.

Despite the momentum towards achieving net-zero carbon emissions and stabilising climate change, the planet remains on a path towards 2.7°C temperature rise by the end of this century as greenhouse gas emissions continue to soar, and floods, heatwaves and droughts intensify every year. According to the International Energy Agency, the latest pledges still leave a significant gap in the emissions reductions needed by 2030 to keep the 1.5 °C target agreed at the 2015 Paris Climate Conference.