While the Paris Agreement sets the goal of staying well below 2 degrees of global warming compared to the pre-industrial era, it seems evermore obvious that we, as humanity, are not on track.  In 2018, IPCC highlighted the unprecedented scale of the challenge required to keep warming to 1.5°C. Five years later, that challenge has become even greater due to a continued increase in greenhouse gas emissions.  The pace and scale of what has been done so far, and current plans, are insufficient to tackle climate change. More than a century of burning fossil fuels as well as unequal and unsustainable energy and land use has led to global warming of 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels. This has resulted in more frequent and more intense extreme weather events as well as wide-scale slow onset events (such as chronic increasing temperatures, desertification, loss of biodiversity, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat and related impact, ocean acidification, sea level rise, salinization [1]) that further increase risks for human health and ecosystems.  “Almost half of the world’s population lives in regions that are highly vulnerable to climate change. In the last decade, deaths from floods, droughts and storms were 15 times higher in highly vulnerable regions,“ said IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee when presenting the last IPCC Synthesis Report (Climate Change 2023: Synthesis Report [2]) in March 2023.

Given this situation, while deep, rapid and sustained greenhouse gas emissions reductions in all sectors are needed –  emissions should be decreasing by now and will need to be cut by almost half by 2030, if warming is to be limited to 1.5°C, accelerated action to adapt to climate change is also essential to close the gap between existing adaptation and what is needed.

The solution lies in climate resilient development. This involves integrating measures to adapt to climate change with actions to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions in ways that provide wider benefits. The choices made in the next few years will play a critical role in deciding our future and that of generations to come as climate resilient development becomes progressively more challenging with every increment of warming. Leading experts are calling for transformational changes in order to address key challenges ahead in a consistent way, with specific attention to interconnections between climate, ecosystems and society. “Urgent Climate action can secure a liveable future for all.” [3]

Building on its overall expertise on air and climate, Citepa is developing its portfolio on adaptation issues with a view to support public and private actors in designing, implementing, assessing their adaptation actions. Specific effort is drawn on Monitoring and Evaluation issues in alignment with the Enhanced Transparency Framework requirements from the Paris Agreement. A dedicated team is now in place.

 

Illustrative references:

• Ghana (2021): Preparation of the gap analysis report of the national MRV (mitigation) and M&E (adaptation) systems and definition of a roadmap to be in line with the ETF (Enhanced Transparency Framework)
• Pakistan (2021-ongoing): Preparation of the gap analysis report of the national MRV (mitigation) and M&E (adaptation) systems, development of adaptation MRE guidelines for the agriculture sector, implementation of a web-based adaptation tracking module, definition of a roadmap to be in compliance with the ETF (Enhanced Transparency Framework); Follow up project (extension to other sectors)
• Central Asian ReCATH (ICAT, 2022-2024): Technical support for the establishment of Regional Climate Action Transparency Hub (ReCATH) for all 5 countries of Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tadjikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan); member of a consortium led by GHG Mi, in charge of the coordination of adaptation-related tasks.
• MRV system for Uzbekistan (Expertise France, 2022): gaps and needs analysis and definition of a workplan to develop an ETF-compliant national MRV system by 2024
• Other projects are under development, more particularly in line with the preparation of CBIT initiatives and transparency projects.

[1] Slow onset events | UNFCCC

[2] AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023 (ipcc.ch)

[3] Urgent climate action can secure a liveable future for all — IPCC