Protection of Global Climate for Present and Future Generations of Humankind

A/RES/74/219No PDF available

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 19dProtection of global climate for present and future generations of humankind, published in 2020.

What other versions does this mandate have?

17 versions · 2010–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/138

2025A/RES/80/138Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankindLatestCompare with previous version
2024A/RES/79/206Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankindCompare with previous version
2023A/RES/78/153Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankindCompare with previous version
2022A/RES/77/165Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankindCompare with previous version
2022A/RES/76/205Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankindCompare with previous version

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What subjects does this mandate have?

5 topics

Climate Change Conferences Environmental Agreements Environmental Protection Sustainable Development

What does this mandate say?

23 operative paragraphs

Reaffirms that climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time, expresses profound alarm that the emissions of greenhouse gases continue to rise globally, remains deeply concerned that all countries, particularly developing countries, are vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change and are already experiencing an increase in such impacts, including persistent drought and extreme weather events, land degradation, sea level rise, coastal erosion, ocean acidification and the retreat of mountain glaciers, further threatening food security, water availability and livelihoods, and efforts to eradicate poverty in all its forms and dimensions and achieve sustainable development, recognizes the substantial risks posed by climate change to health, and emphasizes in this regard that mitigation of and adaptation to climate change represent an immediate and urgent global priority;

Reaffirms also the Paris Agreement2 and its early entry into force, encourages all the parties to the Agreement to fully implement the Agreement and parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change1 that have not yet done so to deposit their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, where appropriate, as soon as possible, and highlights the synergies between the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement;

Recalls that the Paris Agreement, in enhancing the implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, including its objective, aims to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change, in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty, including by holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change, increasing the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions development in a manner that does not threaten food production, and making finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development;

Welcomes the nationally determined contributions submitted to date, and recalls that the regular updating of such contributions will reflect the highest possible level of ambition, in the light of different national circumstances, and provide the information necessary for clarity, transparency and understanding, in accordance with the relevant decisions;

Notes with concern that the nationally determined contributions presented thus far by the parties to the Paris Agreement are not sufficient and that action is needed to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and underlines the importance of the request in decision 1/CP.21 of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention to the Parties to the Paris Agreement, as appropriate, to communicate or update by 2020 their nationally determined contributions;

Stresses the urgent need to enhance adaptive capacity, strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability to climate change and extreme weather events, and in this regard urges Member States to continue to engage in adaptation planning processes and to enhance cooperation, namely disaster risk reduction;

Welcomes the Paris Agreement work programme, commonly referred to as the Katowice Rulebook, adopted at the third part of the first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement, and encourages Parties to the Paris Agreement to finalize outstanding decisions in upcoming sessions;

Takes note of the report of the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change on the twenty-fourth session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention;

Emphasizes the need for collective efforts to promote sustainable development in its three dimensions in an innovative, coordinated, environmentally sound, open and shared manner;

Underlines the need to address the economic, social and environmental impacts of climate change, and emphasizes the need for action at all levels, to enhance efforts to build resilience through, inter alia, the sustainable management of ecosystems, and to build resilience to reduce the impacts and costs of natural disasters;

Recognizes that enhanced access to international climate finance is important to support mitigation and adaptation efforts in developing countries, especially those that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, and also recognizes the ongoing efforts in this regard;

Acknowledges the work undertaken under the auspices of the Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action, and encourages non-party stakeholders to scale up their efforts to address and respond to climate change;

Welcomes the holding of the 2019 Climate Action Summit convened by the Secretary-General on 23 September, notes the multi-partner initiatives and commitments presented during the Summit and notes also the Youth Climate Summit, held on 21 September;

Also welcomes the convening by the President of the General Assembly of the high-level meeting during the seventy-third session of the General Assembly on the issue of the protection of the global climate for present and future generations of humankind in the context of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;

Reiterates the resolve of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, as set out in paragraphs 3 and 4 of its decision 1/CP.19, to accelerate the full implementation of the decisions constituting the agreed outcome pursuant to its decision 1/CP.13 and to enhance ambition in the pre-2020 period in line with decision 1/CP.21, in order to ensure the highest possible mitigation efforts under the Convention by all parties;

Welcomes the further acceptance or ratification of the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol by 135 countries, up from 117 countries one year ago, expresses concern that the Doha Amendment has not yet entered into force, and welcomes the efforts of those parties that are already implementing the Doha Amendment prior to its entry into force;

Recognizes the importance for all countries of averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage associated with the adverse effects of climate change, including extreme weather events and slow-onset events, and the role of sustainable development in reducing the risk of loss and damage, and in that regard looks forward to the outcome of the review of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage associated with Climate Change Impacts, in the context of relevant decisions of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and article 8 of the Paris Agreement;

Notes with appreciation the hosting by the Government of Chile, in Madrid, of the twenty-fifth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol and the second session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement, in Madrid, from 2 to 13 December 2019;

Urges Member States, taking into account that women and girls are often disproportionately affected by climate change owing to gender inequalities and the dependence of many women on natural resources for their livelihoods, to promote the integration of a gender perspective into environmental and climate change policies and to strengthen mechanisms and provide adequate resources towards achieving the full and equal participation of women in decision-making at all levels on environmental issues, and stresses the need to address the challenges posed by climate change that affect women and girls in particular, including through the full implementation of the new gender action plan adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change at its twenty-third session, and looks forward to its review with a view to advancing towards the goal of promoting gender-responsive and equal and meaningful participation of women in support of climate action;

Recalls the action plan for integrating sustainable development practices into Secretariat-wide operations and facilities management submitted by the Secretary-General and endorsed in its resolution 72/219, and requests the Secretary-General to report on the implementation thereof and the improvements achieved to the General Assembly at its seventy-fifth session;

Notes the ongoing work and potential of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, established for the exchange of experiences and sharing of best practices on mitigation and adaptation in a holistic and integrated manner, and recalls decision 2/CP.23 of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Platform’s purpose and functions and decision 2/CP.24 of the Conference of the Parties on the Platform’s governance and further operationalization;

Decides to include in the United Nations calendar of conferences and meetings for the years 2020 and 2021 the sessions of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention and its subsidiary bodies envisaged for the years 2020 and 2021;

Invites the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to report, through the Secretary-General, to the General Assembly at its seventy-fifth session, on the work of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention, and decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventy-fifth session, under the item entitled “Sustainable development”, the sub-item entitled “Protection of global climate for present and future generations of humankind”.

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