Driving Transformative Change: The Role of the Private Sector in Advancing Short-term and Long-term Signals in the Paris Climate Agreement

This research paper by the World Resources Institute discusses the necessity of clear short-term and long-term policy signals within the Paris Agreement to guide the private sector toward a low-carbon economy and avoid abrupt, costly disruptions.

• The private sector is increasing its climate ambition through emissions reduction targets, energy efficiency programs, and switching to renewable energy, but the current pace of change is insufficient to prevent serious future disruption. There is a risk that incremental progress is masking the actual scale of emissions reductions required.
• Corporate engagement with climate change is increasingly influencing business performance and the flow of investment, placing companies in a position where they must either be disrupted or become the disruptors to benefit from new opportunities.
• There is currently a lack of a collective 'north star' or clear policy signal from governments. Clear and predictable short-term and long-term signals are essential to catalyze action and shift investment patterns, and it is in the private sector's own interest to support these signals.
• The Paris Agreement negotiations offer a chance to establish these signals, potentially through a mechanism that strengthens country commitments every five years (short-term) and an agreed-upon goal for the scale and rate of emissions reductions (long-term).
• The private sector can contribute by shaping Paris Agreement policy outcomes to ensure strong signals and by adopting internal short- and long-term targets that align with a phase-out of emissions.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Driving Transformative Change: The Role of the Private Sector in Advancing Short-term and Long-term Signals in the Paris Climate Agreement. https://www.wri.org/research/driving-transformative-change-role-private-sector-advancing-short-term-and-long-term

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Driving Transformative Change: The Role of the Private Sector in Advancing Short-term and Long-term Signals in the Paris Climate Agreement. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/driving-transformative-change-role-private-sector-advancing-short-term-and-long-term.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Driving Transformative Change: The Role of the Private Sector in Advancing Short-term and Long-term Signals in the Paris Climate Agreement |url=https://www.wri.org/research/driving-transformative-change-role-private-sector-advancing-short-term-and-long-term |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutenddriving, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Driving Transformative Change: The Role of the Private Sector in Advancing Short-term and Long-term Signals in the Paris Climate Agreement}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/driving-transformative-change-role-private-sector-advancing-short-term-and-long-term}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }