Welcome to the United Nations
Climate change presents the single biggest threat to sustainable development everywhere, including in societies, and its widespread, unprecedented impacts disproportionately burden the poorest and most vulnerable. Urgent action to halt climate change and deal with its impacts is integral to achieving all SDGs. The Paris Agreement brings nations together to strengthen the response to climate change, with the aim of keeping global temperature rise this century to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and as close as possible to 1.5 degrees, while building countries’ resilience to the adverse effects of climate change. Achieving the primary goal of the Paris Agreement is vital. Global average temperature has already increased by around one degree, since then underlining the urgency of action if we are to stay as close as possible to 1.5°C. Pursuing climate action, including urgent mobilization of climate finance, transfer of technology and enhancing capacity building efforts, with sustainable development in an integrated and coherent way will enable countries to achieve their goals efficiently and quickly under the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.1 The Agreement entered into force on 4 November 2016, marking a shift in focus towards implementation. It also signals the commitment of nations to take action for the climate and sustainable development, translating the goals of the Paris Agreement into actionable strategies and shifting global financial flows onto low carbon, climate-resilient pathways.
