Differentiated mitigation commitments in a new climate agreement

This briefing, produced by the European Capacity Building Initiative (ecbi) for the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Group, analyzes strategies for the LDC Group to increase global ambition for climate mitigation within the negotiations for a new climate agreement intended to enter into force in 2020.

• The LDC Group seeks a significantly higher level of global ambition for the 2015 agreement, specifically demanding an emission pathway that limits warming below 1.5°C and closes the emissions gap by 2020, as current 2020 pledges under the Copenhagen Accord are insufficient to meet the 2°C or 1.5°C limits.
• There are differing views on the nature of mitigation commitments: the EU advocates for legally binding commitments with ex ante quantification, the US proposes a flexible approach where countries define their own targets based on national circumstances, and other parties suggest a mix of absolute emission reduction targets and flexible commitments based on a country's development.
• Parties are divided on the differentiation of countries. Canada and the US argue the world has changed since 1992, and Ethiopia suggests revising Annexes every five years based on GDP and per capita GDP. Conversely, the like-minded developing countries group opposes renegotiating Annexes, asserting they reflect historic responsibility.
• Equity in distributing mitigation efforts is based on the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities" (CBDR/RC), with four primary dimensions of discussion: responsibility (historical contribution), capability (ability to pay), equality (equal per person allowances), and cost effectiveness.
• An Equity Reference Framework (ERF) is proposed to provide a quantitative and qualitative interpretation of CBDR/RC to guide emission reduction ranges and evaluate proposals. However, it is noted as highly political and difficult to negotiate, with the US and Japan suggesting commitments be put forward independently of a global equity dimension.
• Brazil has proposed that historic responsibility be the primary criterion for future targets, suggesting 1850 as the starting year and calling for the IPCC to develop a reference methodology to quantify these targets.
• The current process for the 2015 agreement, which involves parties initiating "intended nationally determined contributions," lacks an official review process or input on the stringency of commitments, creating a risk that the final agreement will have insufficient ambition.
• The briefing recommends three actions for the LDC Group: developing an LDC-endorsed ERF based on 1.5°C/2°C targets, strengthening alliances with groups like the EU, AOSIS, and AILAC, and focusing on quick pre-2020 mitigation actions such as renewable energy deployment and phasing out fossil fuel subsidies.

APA

Höhne, N., Fekete, H., Ellermann, C., & Freitas, S. (2014). Differentiated mitigation commitments in a new climate agreement. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/LDC-Briefing_differentiated-mitigation-resp.pdf

Chicago

Höhne, Niklas, Hanna Fekete, Christian Ellermann, and Sandra Freitas. Differentiated mitigation commitments in a new climate agreement. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2014. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/LDC-Briefing_differentiated-mitigation-resp.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Höhne |first1=Niklas |last2=Fekete |first2=Hanna |last3=Ellermann |first3=Christian |last4=Freitas |first4=Sandra |title=Differentiated mitigation commitments in a new climate agreement |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=2014 |url=https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/LDC-Briefing_differentiated-mitigation-resp.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hhne2014differentiated, author = {Höhne, Niklas and Fekete, Hanna and Ellermann, Christian and Freitas, Sandra}, title = {{Differentiated mitigation commitments in a new climate agreement}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2014}, url = {https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/LDC-Briefing_differentiated-mitigation-resp.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }