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Signing countries

What You Can Do

Frequently Asked Questions

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Paris-Agreement_Logo_EN_sizeTo keep the global spotlight focused on climate change and build on the strong political momentum from Paris, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon invited representatives of all countries to sign the Paris Agreement on climate change at a special Ceremony at the United Nations Headquarters on 22 April. The Signing Ceremony took place on the first day that the Agreement opened for signatures, and marked the first step toward ensuring that the Agreement enters into legal force as quickly as possible.

175 countries signed the Agreement. See the full list.

The Paris Agreement was adopted by all 196 Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change at COP21 in Paris on 12 December 2015. In the agreement, all countries agreed to work to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius, and given the grave risks, to strive for 1.5 degrees Celsius. Implementation of the Paris Agreement is essential for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, and provides a roadmap for climate actions that will reduce emissions and build climate resilience.

Final list of Parties that signed the Paris Agreement on 22 April

Country statements 

[tweetthis url=”http://ow.ly/ZdtS0″]I demand that world leaders ratify the #ParisAgreement on climate change. The time to act is now. [/tweetthis]

Programme

All sessions will be livestreamed on http://webtv.un.org

Image: 22 April Programme

Signing ceremony – download PDF

Opening and closing scenarios – download as PDF

Order of speakers at Opening Ceremony – download as PDF

Order of speakers: Countries A-L, Trusteeship Council Chamber – download as PDF

Order of speakers: Countries M-Z, ECOSOC Chamber – download as PDF

Luncheon Programme – download PDF

High Level Event on Implementation – download PDF

Logistics note for non-Member States – download PDF

Media Accreditation for signing ceremony on 22 April

Please note that 8 APRIL 2016 was the deadline to request media accreditation for the High-Level Signature Ceremony for the Paris Agreement on Climate Change (April 22). This accreditation will cover any events taking place during the week of 18-22 April.

Paris Agreement – Frequently Asked Questions

The agreement provides a pathway forward to limit temperature rise to well below 2 degrees, maybe even 1.5. The agreement provides a mechanism to increase the level of ambition.

The Paris Agreement is an ambitious, dynamic and universal agreement. It covers all countries and all emissions, and is designed to last. This is a monumental agreement. It solidifies international cooperation for climate change. It provides a way forward.

The Paris Agreement sends a powerful signal to markets that now is the time to invest in the low emission economy. It contains a transparency framework to build mutual trust and confidence.

It will serve as an important tool in mobilizing finance technological support and capacity building for developing countries. And it will also help to scale up global efforts to address and minimize loss and damage from climate change.

Paris is a beginning—we now have to implement the Agreement. But we have taken a giant step forward.

The adoption of the Agreement sends a message to the world that countries are serious about addressing climate change. It is a remarkable triumph that the 196 parties to the Convention have reached this agreement.

Yes. There is no question that the world will be much better off because of this agreement. The agreement will help move us toward a more sustainable future.

The agreement is ambitious and it provides all the tools we need to address climate change, for reducing emissions and to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

The proof will be in the implementation.

The agreement requires all countries to take action, while recognizing their differing situations and circumstances. Under the Agreement, countries are responsible for taking action on both mitigation and adaptation.

Countries officially submitted their own nationally determined climate actions. They have an obligation to implement these plans, and if they do, it will bend the curve downward in the projected global temperature rise.

The agreement not only formalizes the process of developing national plans, but also it provides a binding requirement to assess and review progress on these plans. This mechanism will require countries to continuously upgrade their commitments and ensure that there will be no backtracking.

This agreement is a clarion call from governments that they are ready for implementing the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

Countries have every reason to comply with the terms of the Agreement. It is in their interest to implement the agreement, not only in terms of achieving the benefits of taking climate action, but also to show global solidarity.

There is no benefit to flouting the Agreement. Any short-term time gain will be short-lived. It will undoubtedly be overshadowed by negative reactions, by other countries, financial markets, and most important, by their citizens.

To begin implementing post-2020 climate plans, countries will need to mobilize resources—including the $100 billion pledged by developed countries– and making investments in a low-carbon direction.

Countries agreed in Paris to take vigorous action to promote climate action, ramp up financing and begin implementation of their climate plans. Countries will have an opportunity, as part of a collective review in 2018, to update these plans.

We need to integrate climate action with the implementation efforts for the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, as the actions for one are necessary and vital for progress on the other.

The Paris Agreement is a legal instrument that will guide the process for universally acting on climate change. It is a hybrid of legally binding and nonbinding provisions.

The Agreement consists of a core agreement that governs the international process will be binding on parties, while there are elements that are not part of the legally binding agreement. These parts, such as the intended nationally determined contributions, may be binding at the national level.

Yes. The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities is reflected in this Agreement. There is clearly a duty on all parties to take climate action, according to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capacities, in the light of different national circumstances.

186 countries submitted their INDCs prior to the Paris Conference and two submitted their INDCs on the last night of the Conference. It shows very broad engagement in the process.

The Paris agreement helps us to avoid locking in a level of ambition that would make the well below 2 degrees goal improbable. In 2018 countries will have an opportunity to review their collective effort against the global goals prior to formally submitting their national contributions to the new agreement. This exercise will be repeated every five years.

We have an agreement and we have a chance now to reach our goal. We couldn”t say that without an agreement. The Paris Agreement will put us on a pathway to achieve the 2 degree goal or less. We did not expect to leave Paris with commitments to reach that goal, but rather, with a process that will get us there. And that is what the Agreement provides.

The fact that 188 countries representing close to 100 percent of global emissions submitted their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions is very encouraging. It shows that countries see Paris as the first stop in a process and are fully engaged in getting where we need to go.

A strong climate agreement backed by action on the ground will help us achieve the Sustainable Development Goals to end poverty, build stronger economies and safer, healthier, and more liveable societies everywhere. There are 12 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals that directly involve taking action on climate change– in addition to climate change having its own goal.

The Paris Conference will feature new climate action announcements that will demonstrate how civil society and the private sector are moving forward to address climate change.

The Lima to Paris Action Agenda, which produced hundreds of new commitments and initiatives, has shown that the actions needed to address climate change are the same as for the Sustainable Development Agenda.

The world has warmed before, but never this quickly, and it is due to human activities. For instance, the changes in the Arctic between just six years ago and now are shocking.

We can limit global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees if we take action now. We need all countries and all sectors of society to act now—it is in the interests of everyone.

It is doable. Taking climate action now makes good economic sense. The more we delay, the more we pay. We can promote economic growth, eradicate extreme poverty, and improve people’s health and well-being by acting today.

Parties agreed in Paris on a process to determine what approaches and arrangements are needed to best address the needs of those countries and communities who have contributed least but are impacted most from climate change.

What you can do

The first thing is: Demand that world leaders sign the Paris Agreement! This is crucial to set the world on a path to lower its carbon emissions. You can write a letter to your representative or simply make your voice heard on social media.

Taking climate action is up to everybody. To make it easier, we’ve put together a list of things you can do. You can also visit the UN Framework Convention on Climate Changeto  learn more about the Paris Agreement, and spread what you’ve learned and what you’re doing on your social networks with the hashtag #ParisAgreement.

Need some inspiration? Check out our Lazy Person’s Guide to Saving the World and our Year of Living Sustainably initiative.

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