What is the Paris Agreement?

The Paris Agreement is linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), a global treaty aimed at preventing climate change. The agreement was adopted during the climate conference (COP21) in Paris in December 2015 and formally came into force at the end of 2016.

Goals of the Paris Agreement

The Paris Agreement states that global temperature increases should be kept well below 2°C, with efforts to limit the rise to 1.5°C. This is mainly to be achieved through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Another key aspect of the agreement is strengthening the ability to adapt to the negative effects of climate change and addressing the loss and damages caused by it.

What does the Paris Agreement entail?

To slow down global warming and achieve the 1.5°C target, we must cut global emissions in half every decade. This means that by 2030, emissions need to be reduced by 50%, and by 2050, we must reach net-zero emissions—meaning we do not emit more than what is absorbed by plants and other natural processes.

Nearly all countries in the world, 194 in total, have committed to taking action to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement. Each country’s commitments must become increasingly ambitious and will be reviewed every five years through a global stocktake. This process assesses countries' collective progress toward the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement. Each year before the COP conferences, the UNFCCC Secretariat publishes a short report summarizing how countries’ planned commitments align with the agreement’s long-term temperature goals.

Support for low- and middle-income countries

Implementation support is a central part of the Paris Agreement. One of the key principles is that countries with the greatest resources should lead the way, and that high-income nations should support lower-income ones. This support is provided through climate finance, technology transfer, and capacity building and is intended to help both reduce emissions and adapt to climate change. More countries are also encouraged to contribute to climate finance.

Human Rights and Gender Equality

The Paris Agreement emphasizes that the transition to a low-carbon society should respect human rights and promote gender equality. This has been part of the Climate Convention since 2001 and is now a key agenda item at UN climate conferences. It involves issues such as how men and women perceive climate change, their different emission levels, how they are affected by climate impacts, and their opportunities to influence the transition.

The agreement states that climate action must take human rights into account and actively contribute to gender equality. For example, adaptation measures should be designed with a gender perspective. Additionally, the agreement acknowledges that efforts to reduce emissions should be carried out in a way that supports sustainable development, with gender equality as a core objective under the UN’s Agenda 2030.

NDCs - National Determined Contributions

Each country must submit its NDCs every five years outlining its emission reduction targets and the actions of how it plans to achieve them. These plans may also include measures for climate adaptation. However, it is up to each country to decide how to achieve its emission reductions. Overall presenting a climate action plan. The Paris Agreement requires nations to set their highest possible level of ambition based on their capabilities. Some countries need support to reach their targets, such as financial aid, capacity-building initiatives, or technology transfers from nations with greater resources.

The EU & Sweden

The EU submits a jointly decided NDC that all its member states adhere to. This means that the EU’s climate targets apply to the entire union, including Sweden. As a result, Sweden does not submit a separate national climate plan to the UN and is rather assigned a minimum reduction goal by the EU so that it contributes to the overall reduction of the EU (this is done through the Effort Sharing Regulation (ESR)

Sweden’s long-term climate goal is to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. Swedish emissions must be reduced by at least 85% compared to 1990 levels. As of 2025, Sweden’s emissions have decreased by approximately 38%, meaning the country has less than five years to achieve reductions greater than those accomplished over the past 35 years.

In 2025, countries in the Paris Agreement must submit an updated climate plan with targets and commitments ahead of COP30, which will take place in Brazil.

What Do the Paris Agreement’s Goals Mean in Practice?

To understand what it truly means to limit global warming to 1.5°C, we must turn to climate science. When the agreement was signed in 2015, politicians recognized this and tasked the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) with summarizing the necessary actions. According to their research, greenhouse gas emissions must be halved by 2030 and reach near-zero by 2050. Since the total amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere determines climate impacts, rapid reductions before 2030 are crucial. If emissions are not cut in half by then, the chances of meeting the target are nearly nonexistent.

To achieve this, the already existent climate solutions and changes need to be implemented at a massive scale. For example, renewable energy sources should become the main source of energy, electric public transport should become more accessible to everyone, train should be the norm for short- and medium-haul travel, and a change to healthier diets where more veggies are integrated and meat consumption is reduced should take place. The good news is that all of these alternatives have the potential to reduce diseases, make cities more accessible and livable for everyone, and bring more opportunities for people to develop. 

Why Is the Paris Agreement Needed?

The Earth’s average temperature has risen significantly due to human activities, primarily through the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The Paris Agreement is a crucial climate accord between the world’s nations to combat climate change.

Climate patterns have naturally varied throughout history. However, the current changes are alarmingly rapid and extreme. Measurements show that the global average temperature over the past decade has been approximately 1.2°C higher than in the latter half of the 19th century. This increase has serious consequences for both humans and nature, including more frequent and severe natural disasters.

What is the 1.5-degree limit set by the Paris Agreement?

The 1.5-degree goal is a key part of the Paris Agreement, aiming to limit global warming to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Research shows that to achieve this goal, global greenhouse gas emissions must be halved every decade. This means emissions must be reduced by 50 percent by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. Net zero means that emissions do not exceed what can be absorbed by natural carbon sinks, such as forests and oceans.

Consequences of 1.5 to 2 degrees of warming

Although 1.5 degrees may sound like a small temperature increase, it will have major consequences for the climate, ecosystems, and people. Research indicates that:

• Extreme heatwaves: About 14 percent of the world's population will experience extreme heatwaves at least once every five years with 1.5 degrees of warming. At 2 degrees, this proportion increases to 37 percent.
• Sea level rise: At 1.5 degrees of warming, sea levels could rise to 77 cm by 2100. At 2 degrees, the increase could reach 160 centimeters. Scenarios that would leave more than 150 million people displaced. Many of them, as their whole countries disappear, like it’ll happen to small islands like the Bahamas and the south of Vietnam. Other cities which would also be flooded include Miami, New Orleans, Alexandria, Venice, and Mumbai-among others. Sources: 1, 2.
• Dying coral reefs: Coral reefs are highly sensitive to temperature changes. With 1.5 degrees of warming, 90 percent of the world's coral reefs are at risk of disappearing. At 2 degrees, up to 99 percent could die out, threatening entire marine ecosystems. Resulting in loss of biodiversity, reduced fishing yields, and loss of coastal protection.
• Changing ecosystems: Rapid climate change prevents many ecosystems from adapting in time. The boreal forests of Northern Europe, dominated by spruce and pine, are particularly at risk.
• Declining crop yields: Drought and water shortages will lead to reduced crop yields. At 2 degrees of warming, maize yields in tropical regions could decrease by 7 percent, posing serious challenges to food security, especially as the global population continues to grow.
• Uninhabitable areas: Currently, between 15 and 20 million people are forced to flee each year due to climate-related disasters. This number is expected to rise significantly in a warmer climate, especially in low-lying coastal areas and densely populated cities in developing countries.

Beyond 2 degrees of warming

If warming exceeds 2 degrees, we risk triggering so-called feedback effects, where climate change accelerates itself:

• Increased water vapor in the atmosphere acts as a greenhouse gas, further driving warming.
• Methane emissions from thawing permafrost could release large amounts of greenhouse gases.
• Reduced carbon absorption by the oceans means more CO₂ remains in the atmosphere, worsening global warming.

Currently, we are on track for at least 3 degrees of warming. At 3 to 4 degrees, Earth would become a fundamentally different planet from the one we know today. The consequences for ecosystems and societies could be so severe that human civilization itself is at risk.