A paper by Max van Deursen and Sumit Prasad at CEEW, disclosed in official climate transparency reports, assesses past performance as well as progress towards the implementation of crucial climate targets
While it is stressed that climate transparency reports contain powerful information contributing to transparency, it is uncertain if they alone would help the developed nations garner trust in their commitment to achieving climate-related targets.
What remains of the global carbon budget—a benchmark for keeping global warming below 1.5°C—is estimated to be about 500 GtCO2. This amount will be depleted by the end of the decade at the current rate of global emissions (IPCC, 2021).
Given this limited carbon space, deep emission reductions are imperative in this critical decade (2020–2030). However, are developed countries responsible for over 75 percent of historical emissions (Busch, 2015), taking deep emission reductions at an adequate pace?
Developed countries' efforts to reduce emissions directly impact the limited carbon budget available to developing countries. Developing countries need sufficient carbon space to address economic and social development challenges and eliminate poverty. However, there needs to be more clarity on how developed countries are performing in meeting their commitments and how much of the remaining carbon budget is available.
In this issue brief, we aim to fill this gap by analysing the emission trajectories of developed countries, covering historic and projected emissions from 1990 to 2050.