Climate Change: Reaching the Paris Agreement

On 12 December 2015, Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) reached a landmark agreement to combat climate change and intensify actions for a sustainable low carbon future. The central aim of the Paris Agreement is to keep global temperature rise well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, and to limit the increase to 1.5°C, while increasing climate change adaptation and providing financial mechanisms for climate-resilient development.

The Paris Agreement was not easy to reach. Negotiations about climate change had been ongoing for a decade and after the failure of Copenhagen in 2009 to produce a legally-binding agreement, there was enormous pressure for Paris to succeed. The negotiations were intense – only two weeks after the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris and with heightened security at every turn, delegates braced the cold winter winds of Le Bourget to find consensus. While the Paris Agreement represents only a small part in the on-going efforts needed to promote a sustainable world, it is an important step for climate governance and a reaffirmation of environmental multilateralism. As said by François Hollande, President of France, “In Paris, we have seen many revolutions. The most beautiful, most peaceful revolution has been achieved, a climate revolution.”

This collection is part of my broader portfolio of work documenting COP 21 as part of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Reporting Services team, producing the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB). For a more in-depth understanding of the climate negotiations, download From Bali to Marrakech: A Decade of International Climate Negotiations, which also features a number of my photographs, and see our full coverage of COP 21 at http://enb.iisd.org/climate/cop21/enb/.

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COP21, Paris, 2015. A giant mechanical polar bear built by Greenpeace welcomes delegates to the venue, reminding them of the importance of reaching an ambitious climate agreement.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Pillars displaying country flags line the entrance to Le Bourget

COP21, Paris, 2015. Delegates walk between the venues at Le Bourget

COP21, Paris, 2015. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Chair Hoesung Lee, Republic of Korea, walks with members of the IPCC and UNFCCC Secretariat

COP21, Paris, 2015. Delegates participating in plenary.

COP21, Paris, 2015.

COP21, Paris, 2015. UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres. Photo published in The Guardian.

COP21, Paris, 2015. President François Hollande, France.

COP21, Paris, 2015. President Barack Obama, US

COP21, Paris, 2015. ADP Co-Chair Daniel Reifsnyder, US

COP21, Paris, 2015. Contact group on the Forum and Work Programme on Response Measures. Photo published in the New York Times Blog.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Trigg Talley, US, speaks with delegates in the corridors. Photo published in the New York Times Blog.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Members of the G-77/China meet informally between sessions.

COP21, Paris, 2015.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Members of civil society call to ‘kick big polluters out’ of the climate negotiations.

COP21, Paris, 2015. COP 21 President Laurent Fabius, Foreign Minister, France, holds up the Draft Paris Outcome submitted to the COP by the The Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action (ADP).

COP21, Paris, 2015. A giant mechanical polar bear built by Greenpeace welcomes delegates to the venue, reminding them of the importance of reaching an ambitious climate agreement.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Delegates review the draft text.

OP21, Paris, 2015. A UN security guard directs a non-party delegate to one of the ADP overflow rooms

COP21, Paris, 2015. Youth advocate for delegates to ‘do the right move’ to reach a climate agreement. Youth perform a dance-off, encouraging delegates to ‘do the right move’ to deal with climate change.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Members of civil society show their dissatisfaction about key issues being ‘cut’ from the negotiating text.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Canadian youth demonstrate the inevitable impact of climate change, and call on leaders to engage proactively with youth to promote social justice.

COP21, Paris, 2015.

COP21, Paris, 2015. A giant mechanical polar bear built by Greenpeace welcomes delegates to the venue, reminding them of the importance of reaching an ambitious climate agreement.

COP21, Paris, 2015. During the final days of the negotiations, delegates huddle in the corridors before receiving the revised draft Paris outcome. Photo published in The Guardian.

COP21, Paris, 2015. The draft Paris outcome is distributed to delegates.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko and Edna Molewa, Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, South Africa, speak with Laurence Tubiana, COP 21 Presidency. Photo published in The Guardian.

COP21, Paris, 2015.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Hundreds of people join a large demonstration that blocks the entrance to Le Bourget, calling for a fair, transparent and ambitious climate agreement.

COP21, Paris, 2015. As the negotiations continue behind closed doors, hundreds of people begin to protest outside of the entrance to Le Bourget.

COP21, Paris, 2015. UN Security at the venue.

COP21, Paris, 2015. US Secretary of State John Kerry and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon during a bilateral meeting hours before the Paris Agreement was adopted. Photo published in the New York Times Blog.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Hundreds of people join a large demonstration that blocks the entrance to Le Bourget, calling for a fair, transparent and ambitious climate agreement.

COP21, Paris, 2015. UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres speaks with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the COP 21 Presidency in the final hours of negotiation.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Members of civil society form a long human chain to lay down their ‘red lines which cannot be crossed’ as part of the climate negotiations.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Members of the newly-formed High Ambition Coalition enter the plenary with Tony de Brum, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marshall Islands, and US Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern. Photo published in Rolling Stone Magazine.

COP21, Paris, 2015. COP 20 President Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, Minister of Environment, Peru, is thanked for his leadership over the years.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Ambassador Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko, South Africa, and lead negotiator for the G-77/China.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Amina J. Mohammed, then Minister of the Environment, Nigeria, speaks with former US Vice President Al Gore.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Members of the Like-Minded Developing Countries (LMDCs) huddle during the final negotiations.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Laurence Tubiana, COP 21 Presidency; UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres; UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon; COP 21 President Laurent Fabius, Foreign Minister, France; and President François Hollande, France, celebrate the adoption of the Paris Agreement. Photo published in The Guardian.

COP21, Paris, 2015. COP 21 President Laurent Fabius, Foreign Minister, France, thanks parties for their support.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Halldór Thorgeirsson, UNFCCC Secretariat; Laurence Tubiana, COP 21 Presidency; UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres; and COP 21 President Laurent Fabius, Foreign Minister, France; celebrate the adoption of the Paris Agreement.

COP21, Paris, 2015. Delegates applaud the adoption of the Paris Agreement.

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Climate Change: Reaching the Paris Agreement

Kiara Worth

KIARA WORTH

living fiercely