Trending in 2016: Climate Action

It’s not just for academics, politicians and environmentalists. From Leo DiCaprio’s acceptance speech at the Oscars to co-workers at the water cooler, expect to hear a lot about climate action this year.

Here’s an overview of what to expect in 2016:

• Remember Paris? Well, the next meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP22) will be held in November 2016 in Marrakech, Morocco.


• And on April 22 (Earth Day) Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon hosted a signing ceremony for the Paris Agreement at UN headquarters in New York with more than 160 representatives of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)


• At least one country ratified the Paris Agreement before that date. Fiji was the first – who will be the next?


• Air travel was omitted from the Paris Agreement, but that doesn’t mean it’s immune to change. In early 2016, following 6 years of talks, the global aviation industry signed a deal creating binding limits on CO2 emissions. Aviation is the fastest-growing source of greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for approximately two percent of total GHG emissions worldwide.


• The world will be watching the outcome of the U.S. Presidential Election in November – with diverse views among candidates and parties the outcome will chart the course that the U.S. will take on climate action for the next four years.

With a variety of major international climate events slated for 2016, it will be an interesting year for major climate trends and issues.

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