Paris Agreement Statistics

Lauded as a landmark global effort to combat climate change, the Paris Agreement—adopted by 196 parties in 2015 and now ratified by 195 UNFCCC members (with only Eritrea left unratified) as of September 2024, including critical players like the EU, China, and India alongside smaller nations like the Vatican and Yemen—saw the U.S. withdraw and rejoin, entered into force in 2016 after meeting its ratification threshold with 55 countries representing 55% of global emissions, and was signed by 197 countries by Earth Day 2016, though specific countries like Iran remain non-ratifying signatories; while 48 of 48 least developed countries (LDCs) and 39 of 44 small island developing states (SIDS) have fully ratified, covering over 90% of the global population, and 166 parties submitted initial NDCs by 2016, with 23 updating their ambitions in 2022 and 194 now covering 2030 targets, current NDCs still project 2.8°C warming by 2100—far from the 1.5°C goal—and only 20 countries explicitly mention a fossil fuel phase-out, though 170 set renewable energy targets; despite $100 billion in climate finance finally met in 2022, gaps persist, with developing nations seeking a $1 trillion annual goal, and while multilateral development banks provided $121 billion in 2023 and private finance $119 billion in 2021, only 15% of climate finance comes as grants, and 93% of NDCs include adaptation components; transparency efforts, including biennial reports and the Article 6 carbon market, are advancing, with the Global Stocktake at COP28 calling for a full fossil fuel transition, and while renewable capacity hit 510 GW in 2023—50% above initial pledges—global CO2 emissions rose to 40.6 GtCO2eq in 2023, and global surface temperatures reached 1.45°C above pre-industrial levels (with 2023 also the hottest year on record), Arctic warming three times the global average, and sea level rise at 4.62 mm per year; with 89% of emissions covered by net zero pledges yet 70% of countries off-track per WRI, and 54 countries committing to phase out coal at COP28, what does this data tell us about the Paris Agreement's real-world impact?