Stakeholders in the battle against climate change should keep their eyes on the proceedings of next month’s Group of 20 summit in Hangzhou, China, the World Resources Institute said in a blog post this week. “So what specific messages from the G20 meeting would indicate that world leaders are actively embracing the new post-Paris era? To begin with, the concluding Summit Communiqué could put climate and clean energy at the top, rather than buried near the end, to show its new importance,” says the post, written by WRI Director of Economics Helen Mountford and Senior Fellow Andrew Light.
There are three main actions that could come of the Sept. 4-5 summit that would result in significant progress on climate change in the wake of the Paris Agreement, Light and Mountford wrote.
First, the group may make a formal commitment to phase out fossil fuel subsidies by 2015. “Now is the right time for the G20 to make its own target date for phase out crystal clear, in a way that aligns with the commitments made in [the Paris climate change negotiations] and the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals,” the post says.
The group may also make headway on green finance, it adds. “One way the G20 can incentivize low-carbon investment is by pushing comprehensive climate-related financial risk disclosure,” Light and Mountford wrote.
Finally, the leaders must reaffirm their commitment to the Paris Agreement, which requires nations to take steps to curb global temperature rise, the post says. The accord’s entry into force is a three-step process consisting of adoption, signing, and then ratification. Nearly 200 nations adopted the agreement in Paris in 2015 and 175 signed it in April in New York. So far, 22 nations representing 1.08 percent of global emissions have ratified the accord; it will take effect 30 days after being ratified by at least 55 nations representing 55 percent of global emissions.
The G20 countries represent roughly 80 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
During the April 22 signing ceremony in New York, China, the world’s top emitter, pledged to ratify the agreement before the G20 summit. It remains to be seen if this will be achieved.
The United States has also committed to joining the agreement by the end of the year. “Another significant indicator of the post-Paris era would be if all G20 parties agreed to ratify the Agreement before the end of the year, ensuring its entry into force before the upcoming political transitions in the U.S. and China,” the post says.
