WWF is warning that the next year could be decisive for the planet’s future, as the UN climate summit COP29 approaches in Baku, Azerbaijan. With temperatures soaring to record levels and cataclysmic climate impacts wreaking havoc around the world, the need for urgent, transformative action to phase out fossil fuels, transform food systems, and halt and reverse nature loss has never been greater.
COP29 comes at a pivotal moment, as countries are due to submit new national climate plans – Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – over the course of the next twelve months. The ambition of these plans will be crucial in driving the pace of climate action throughout the next five years. It may become impossible to prevent global warming from exceeding 1.5°C without huge transformative leaps forward every year until 2030.
A significant uplift in climate finance will be essential to ensure this transformative action, and its benefits for people and nature, become a reality. At COP29, countries are set to negotiate a new climate finance goal – the New Collective Quantifiable Goal (NCQG). For a successful outcome, countries must ensure this new goal meets the mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage needs of developing countries.
Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, WWF Global Climate and Energy Lead, and COP20 President, said: “This is a decisive year for climate action. COP29 must be the launchpad for urgent, transformative change. We have the solutions to the climate crisis available now, but without adequate finance, they can’t be deployed at the necessary speed and scale. We simply can’t afford to delay critical action any further. It’s time to invest in our future.
“A new, ambitious climate finance target that meets the needs of developing countries is crucial. Without confidence in funding, developing countries can’t ramp up their climate commitments. After years of unmet promises, this summit must kickstart a new era for climate finance and build global trust.”
Fernanda Carvalho, WWF Global Climate and Energy Policy Lead, said: “The action we take in the next five years will be critical if we are to stand a chance of limiting global warming to 1.5oC and avoiding the worst impacts of the climate crisis. As countries develop their new national climate plans, they must ensure they urgently deliver rapid and transformative action. COP29 will be a pivotal moment to build consensus around the level of ambition, support and solutions that are needed. Countries must show they are responding to COP28’s outcome by embedding fossil fuel phase-out plans within their national strategies. Transforming the energy sector is the most impactful way to rapidly reduce emissions and avoid a climate catastrophe.”
To limit global warming to no more than 1.5°C, global emissions need to be reduced by 43% by 2030, and 60% by 2035 and reach net zero by 2050. WWF’s NDCsWeWant Checklist includes important elements countries should be included when designing new national climate plans aligned with these targets.
COP29 should also aim to cement the role of nature in climate action. The climate and nature crises are inextricably linked. In recent climate COP decisions, countries have increasingly recognized the importance of nature and nature-based solutions in climate action. Countries need to turn this recognition into action by fully integrating nature in the development and delivery of their national climate action and adaptation plans.
WWF is calling for a new Climate-Nature Work Programme within the UNFCCC to deliver on the recommendations on nature from the COP28 outcome, promote synergies between national climate and biodiversity plans, and mainstream nature-based solutions and ecosystem-based approaches.
