Global update

The September 2021 Global Update from Climate Action Tracker reports that global climate action continues to lag behind the requirements for limiting warming to 1.5°C. While some countries have updated their NDCs, the 2030 emissions gap remains significant (20-23 GtCO2e). The report introduces a new rating system where only The Gambia is rated as overall 1.5°C compatible, while most developed nations are rated as 'Insufficient' or worse due to inadequate climate finance and policy implementation. It further critiques the lack of transparency and robustness in most national net zero targets and highlights the continued reliance on coal and gas in several major economies.

• The emissions gap for a 1.5°C Paris-compatible pathway has narrowed only slightly, decreasing by approximately 2.6–3.9 GtCO2e (or 11–14%) due to new Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), leaving a remaining gap of 20 to 23 GtCO2e.
• Under the new Climate Action Tracker (CAT) rating system, only one country, The Gambia, is rated as overall "1.5°C Paris Agreement compatible".
• Most national net zero targets are considered vague and lack robust short-term targets. Of 25 countries assessed, only Chile, Costa Rica, and the European Union have net zero targets rated as "acceptable" in terms of scope, architecture, and transparency.
• A group of countries, including Australia, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, Switzerland, and Viet Nam, failed to increase their 2030 ambition, submitting targets that are the same as or less ambitious than those from 2015.
• Coal power remains a critical issue, particularly in Asia. China built 75% of the world's new coal-fired power plants in 2020, and India maintains the second largest coal plant pipeline globally without concrete phase-out plans.
• The CAT identifies a failure in international climate finance from developed countries, which is described as essential for developing countries to reduce emissions. Even countries with strong domestic targets, such as the EU, Germany, and Norway, are rated as "Insufficient" overall partly due to this lack of finance.
• The new rating system categorizes several countries as "Critically insufficient", including Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Thailand; the CAT states that if all governments adopted this approach, global warming would exceed 4°C.
• The UK is the only developed country rated better than "Insufficient" (rated as "Almost sufficient"), primarily because it has a domestic target compatible with 1.5°C, although its current policies and climate finance contributions are not yet at that level.

APA

Fekete, H., Höhne, N., Jeffery, L., Moisio, M., Casas, M. J. D. V., Hans, F., Mooldijk, S., Nascimento, L., Illenseer, N., Stockwell, C., Fyson, C., Geiges, A., Ramalope, D., Hare, B., Gidden, M., Horsch, J., Ganti, G., & Schaeffer, M. (2021). Global update. NewClimate Institute. https://climateactiontracker.org/documents/871/CAT_2021-09_Briefing_GlobalUpdate.pdf

Chicago

Fekete, Hanna, Niklas Höhne, Louise Jeffery, Mia Moisio, Maria Jose de Villafranca Casas, Frederic Hans, Silke Mooldijk, et al. Global update. NewClimate Institute, 2021. https://climateactiontracker.org/documents/871/CAT_2021-09_Briefing_GlobalUpdate.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Fekete |first1=Hanna |last2=Höhne |first2=Niklas |last3=Jeffery |first3=Louise |last4=Moisio |first4=Mia |last5=Casas |first5=Maria Jose de Villafranca |last6=Hans |first6=Frederic |last7=Mooldijk |first7=Silke |last8=Nascimento |first8=Leonardo |last9=Illenseer |first9=Niklas |display-authors=etal |title=Global update |publisher=NewClimate Institute |date=September 2021 |url=https://climateactiontracker.org/documents/871/CAT_2021-09_Briefing_GlobalUpdate.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fekete2021global, author = {Fekete, Hanna and Höhne, Niklas and Jeffery, Louise and Moisio, Mia and Casas, Maria Jose de Villafranca and Hans, Frederic and Mooldijk, Silke and Nascimento, Leonardo and Illenseer, Niklas and Stockwell, Claire and Fyson, Claire and Geiges, Andreas and Ramalope, Deborah and Hare, Bill and Gidden, Matt and Horsch, Jonas and Ganti, Gaurav and Schaeffer, Michiel}, title = {{Global update}}, institution = {NewClimate Institute}, year = {2021}, month = sep, url = {https://climateactiontracker.org/documents/871/CAT_2021-09_Briefing_GlobalUpdate.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }