UNFCCC

Summary

UNFCCC is the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. “The UNFCCC secretariat (UN Climate Change) is the United Nations entity tasked with supporting the global response to the threat of climate change. The Convention has near universal membership (199 Parties) and is the parent treaty of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The main aim of the Paris Agreement is to keep the global average temperature rise this century as close as possible to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The UNFCCC is also the parent treaty of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. The ultimate objective of all three agreements under the UNFCCC is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that will prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system, in a time frame which allows ecosystems to adapt naturally and enables sustainable development.” (from the UNFCC ‘about us’ May 2023)

CDR-specific Issues

The Supervisory Committee of the UNFCC solicited comments regarding carbon dioxide removal (CDR) relevant to a future Article 6.4 mechanism, for discussion in their May 31, 2023 meeting. OpenAir responded with an open letter, and signed a second open letter from the Carbon Business Council on the same topic.