There are many reasons why we should celebrate the climate agreement reached in Paris. It truly deserves to be called historic, as is being said everywhere. Many, still traumatized by previous failures, are surprised by the terms agreed upon in its scope. The document is a very important and significant step towards a low-carbon economy, even if important questions remain about the consequences of its implementation.
Leaders from all sectors of society, including those from the business sector, were present and played a decisive role in helping us achieve the convergence that allows us to dream of a future of greater security for the planet.
The goal of limiting global warming to less than 2°C, converging towards 1.5°C, has set an important signal in terms of the actions that should be implemented by companies. They now have a planning tool that should be included in their business plans.
However, it is important to remember that agreements do not happen by force of last-minute arrangements. For Paris to happen, a long journey was necessary, a broad articulation that included the process of constructing the Brazilian INDC – the acronym in English for the set of voluntary commitments defined by the countries and presented to the United Nations as the basis for the agreement.
The fact that our national goals were relatively ambitious, built on open dialogue between the sectors of national society involved, gave legitimacy to the role played by our Minister of the Environment. And it was reflected in the authority with which the Brazilian delegation acted, decisive in the articulation between central countries and developing nations, as well as in the creation of the initiative that was named High Ambition Coalition, an articulation of the countries with the highest ambition in acting to define the goals of the agreement.
The mobilization and engagement of cities was also very important, since 75% of global emissions occur in urban areas. Ten large cities were present and presented their solutions, including Rio de Janeiro. They presented their action plans to address climate change and important initiatives such as Compact of Mayors, an articulation of global city networks.
The participation of the business sector was also unprecedented. Not only because it was more structured, but also because the intense engagement in pre-COP actions produced feasible and productive solutions. This was especially true in discussions about the financing needed to scale up low-carbon industrial technologies, renewable energy, forest restoration and carbon-capturing agricultural techniques. Brazilian companies demonstrated their awareness of their decisive role in achieving our national and global goals.
Another decisive aspect, strongly demanded by the business leaders present, was the definition of a globally recognized carbon pricing mechanism and the establishment of market-based modalities for its trade. In his closing speech, French President François Hollande proposed the formation of a coalition of countries for pricing. In the absence of such a mechanism, important initiatives, some of which are strongly involved in carbon capture, could be postponed due to the lack of investment security.
The adaptation agenda has made significant progress. Measures that were previously considered secondary are now included in the documents that summarize the INDCs of 196 parties (countries and economic blocs), mainly the poorest ones. The creation of a fund with a ceiling of US$100 billion per year from 2020 onwards was defined, formed by contributions from the richest countries to finance mitigation and adaptation measures for developing nations. Although trillions of dollars are expected to be needed to address the consequences of climate change, an important step has been taken.
What remains certain is that, despite the uncertainties that still exist, this agreement has changed everything. The low-carbon economy is now a path of no return.
