Experts sound the alarm over global inaction on critical issues: 'We have seen virtually nothing'

The Paris Agreement is an international climate treaty aiming to limit the global temperature increase to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit above levels before the Industrial Revolution. In order to meet this goal, nations must work together to make policy changes to reduce their contributions to rising global temperatures. 

Governments involved knew the initial targets set in 2015 weren't going to cut it, so they agreed to submit updated goals (see them at the Climate Target Update Tracker) by early 2025 that would better align with the limit set by the Paris Agreement. However, a press release from Climate Action Tracker reports that the 2035 target updates fall alarmingly short.

What's happening?

According to the press release, most of the proposals submitted don't present a credible pathway to limit global temperature increases to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels. Experts have warned that these insufficient commitments could accelerate environmental damage and make it increasingly difficult to avert catastrophic climate shifts.

"The public is entitled to expect a strong reaction from their governments to the fact that global warming has now reached 1.5° for an entire year, but we have seen virtually nothing of real substance," said Bill Hare, CEO of Climate Analytics.

Out of the six countries mentioned, only one — the UK — set acceptable targets. And while the U.S. submitted its proposal in December 2024, the Trump administration has since pulled out of the Paris Agreement and walked back on some climate actions.

Why are these climate proposals important? 

The scientific community has overwhelmingly agreed that human activity, like burning dirty energy resources like oil and coal, contributes to pollution heating the planet, which supercharges extreme weather events and rising sea levels. This affects everyone, causing floods, fires, and storms that destroy communities and harm people. If sea levels continue to rise because of climbing global temperatures, coastal areas like New York and California could disappear into the ocean.

Scientists have already debunked the "overshoot myth," which claims we'll have more advanced tech in the future to fix the problems we cause today. So there is an urgency attached to these targets if we want to avoid devastating long-term impacts of our planet overheating.

What's being done about improving nationally set climate targets?

While most countries that submitted targets fell short, others are still pending, including big contributors to pollution, such as the EU, China, and India. Experts have set guidelines for the key elements needed to make climate targets stronger — ambition, finance and fairness, credibility, and transparency.

"Every fraction of a degree matters, and we expect governments to use the remaining time to submit ambitious 2035 NDCs and update their 2030 targets that align with the 1.5°C goal and commit to real, transformative action," said professor Niklas Höhne of the NewClimate Institute.

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Individuals can be part of the solution by learning more about critical climate issues. Voting for pro-climate candidates also helps support stronger, more ambitious climate policies at the national level.

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