Paris Agreement: A reflection on net zero 10 years on

The Paris Agreement set out to keep the global temperature rise well below 2°C by 2050, ideally 1.5°C, to reduce the most catastrophic consequences of climate change. To achieve this, it introduced the concept of net zero: balancing greenhouse gas emissions with removals. This flexibility was designed to help countries and industries decarbonise while developing new technologies to remove emissions. Achieving net zero is difficult in a fragmented world. Particularly when countries’ own plans, or Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), vary widely in ambition, scope and timing, transitions...