The State of Climate Action: Major Course Correction Needed from +1.5% to −7% Annual Emissions

The report finds that global emissions are currently increasing by 1.5% annually, whereas a 1.5°C pathway requires a 7% annual reduction until 2030. It identifies critical failures across four dimensions: only 35% of emissions are covered by national net-zero commitments by 2050, fewer than 20% of the top 1,000 companies have 1.5°C science-based targets, only 55% of required technologies are cost-competitive, and over half of annual climate financing needs remain unmet.

• To maintain the 1.5°C goal, global emissions must decline by 7% every year until 2030, which contrasts with the current trend of a 1.5% annual increase.
• National climate commitments are insufficient; while over 80% of global emissions are covered by net-zero targets, only 35% are covered by a target for 2050, and fewer than 10% of emissions are covered by countries with ambitious implementation policies.
• Corporate action is lagging, with fewer than 20% of the world's top 1,000 companies setting science-based targets aligned with 1.5°C, and only 2% of these companies possessing both a public transition plan and actual emissions reductions in line with the 1.5°C path for 2018–2021.
• Approximately 55% of the technologies needed for 1.5°C are currently or will soon be cost-competitive, but nearly half remain too expensive or in early development, specifically hydrogen, carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), and direct air capture (DAC).
• There is a massive climate funding gap, with more than 50% of the estimated $4 trillion in annual financing needs unmet in 2022. This gap is twice as large in developing economies as in developed ones.
• Five of the ten largest emitters—China, India, Russia, Indonesia, and Iran—are jointly projected to overshoot the 1.5°C path by 300 gigatonnes until 2050, representing nearly half of the global overshoot based on national commitments.

APA

World Economic Forum (2023). The State of Climate Action: Major Course Correction Needed from +1.5% to −7% Annual Emissions. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_State_of_Climate_Action_2023.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. The State of Climate Action: Major Course Correction Needed from +1.5% to −7% Annual Emissions. 2023. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_State_of_Climate_Action_2023.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=The State of Climate Action: Major Course Correction Needed from +1.5% to −7% Annual Emissions |date=November 2023 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_State_of_Climate_Action_2023.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2023state, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{The State of Climate Action: Major Course Correction Needed from +1.5\% to −7\% Annual Emissions}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2023}, month = nov, url = {https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_State_of_Climate_Action_2023.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }