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The document defines key terms related to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement, specifically in the context of the COP25 conference. It explains the roles of the Conference of the Parties (COP) and the CMA, the structure of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and the goals of the Paris Agreement, including temperature thresholds and net-zero emissions. Additionally, it details technical negotiation points such as the Paris Rulebook, Article 6 carbon markets, the prevention of double-counting, and the $100 billion climate finance target involving the Green Climate Fund (GCF).

The document identifies critical knowledge gaps in the official Global Stocktake (GST) process, particularly regarding the definitions of equitable implementation, Paris-consistent financial flows, and adequate adaptation responses. It recommends that an independent Global Stocktake (iGST) focus on synthesizing existing data, fostering a common understanding of these ill-defined concepts, and providing forward-looking, country-specific recommendations to raise climate ambition.

The global stocktake is a five-year review process under the Paris Agreement designed to assess collective progress in reducing emissions, building resilience, and aligning financial support. Agreed upon at COP24, the process consists of three phases: information collection (2022), technical assessment, and the communication of findings by the end of 2023. While intended to spur increased ambition for 2025 Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the document notes a lack of clarity regarding the integration of 'loss and damage' and the definition of 'equity' in evaluations. Non-state actors and initiatives like the independent global stocktake (iGST) are highlighted as critical for providing the data and accountability necessary to enhance the process.

The briefing identifies four key priorities for COP25: increasing national climate ambition (NDCs), finalizing rules for international carbon markets and common time frames, reviewing the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage, and advancing climate finance and capacity-building. It emphasizes the need for environmentally sound rules for carbon trading and the importance of integrating social equity into climate policy to ensure a just transition.

The document calls for COP-25 to prioritize human rights, gender equality, and increased national ambition in climate commitments, while warning against the use of carbon offsets and the marginalization of Global South participants due to the conference's relocation from Santiago to Madrid.

The document argues that climate action must be rights-based to be effective, urging COP-25 to ensure that Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Article 6 mechanisms include social and environmental safeguards. It specifically calls for the ratification of the Escazú Agreement, the establishment of a financial mechanism for loss and damage under the Warsaw International Mechanism, and the integration of gender-responsive approaches in the Lima Work Programme. The briefing also emphasizes the need for independent grievance mechanisms in the Sustainable Development Mechanism to remedy harms to local communities and indigenous peoples.

The briefing identifies critical areas for the June 2019 Bonn negotiations, including the design of market-based mechanisms to avoid double-counting, the use of IPCC reports to inform revised nationally determined contributions (NDCs), and the need for effective climate finance. It emphasizes the importance of resourcing the Green Climate Fund and Adaptation Fund, enhancing capacity building through the PCCB and CGE, and defining the future of the Warsaw International Mechanism for loss and damage.

The Paris Agreement Rulebook, agreed upon in December 2018 in Katowice, Poland, provides the practical rules and guidelines for implementing the 2015 Paris Agreement. It establishes frameworks for developing and communicating Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), reporting on climate adaptation and loss and damage, and managing climate finance from developed to developing nations. To ensure accountability, the Rulebook introduces an enhanced transparency framework, a global stocktake process starting in 2023, and an expert compliance committee. As of June 2019, outstanding issues include rules for international market mechanisms to prevent double-counting of emissions reductions and the standardization of time periods for NDCs.

The SB-50 negotiations in Bonn were characterized by persistent political deadlocks, particularly regarding the IPCC 1.5ºC report and Article 6 mechanisms. While there was an increase in countries advocating for human rights-based social safeguards in market mechanisms, deep divisions remain. The session also advanced reviews of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage and the Gender Action Plan, while highlighting the importance of procedural rights and the Escazú Agreement for civil society participation.

The document explains the greenhouse effect and the role of human activities in increasing radiative forcing, noting that global warming has reached approximately 1°C since pre-industrial times. It details the global emissions profile by sector and the projected risks associated with 1.5°C versus 2°C warming, emphasizing that the latter significantly increases risks to human health, food security, and biodiversity. The text outlines the evolution of international climate governance from the UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol to the Paris Agreement and its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). To limit warming to 1.5°C, the document argues for a transformative shift in the energy mix by 2050, including a drastic reduction in fossil fuel consumption and a move toward renewable energy and carbon dioxide removal technologies.

The Doha Declaration on Climate, Health and Wellbeing, drafted by the Global Climate and Health Alliance in December 2012, asserts that health should be central to climate action. It highlights that climate change impacts health through direct means, such as extreme weather and infectious diseases, and indirect means, such as migration and conflict, disproportionately affecting children, women, and poorer populations. The declaration argues that climate mitigation—specifically reducing fossil fuel consumption and shifting to low-carbon energy—provides significant health co-benefits, including improved air quality and increased physical activity. The signatories call for health impacts to be fully evaluated and costed in climate decisions, the cessation of global fossil fuel subsidies, increased funding for health programs in vulnerable countries, and the inclusion of the health sector in designing mitigation and adaptation strategies.

The document outlines the progressive emergence of human rights as a crosscutting issue within UN climate governance since 2010. It details specific references in the Cancun Agreements and the Paris Agreement, the role of UNFCCC constituted bodies in applying human rights standards, and the extent to which State Parties have included human rights in their national reports and Nationally Determined Contributions.

The document argues that climate change poses an existential threat to economic, social, and cultural (ESC) rights, necessitating urgent State action through mitigation, adaptation, and finance. It establishes a 'human rights red-line' at 1.5°C, asserting that warming beyond this limit severely threatens rights to food, water, health, and work. The briefing outlines five key State obligations, including adopting science-based emission targets and addressing extraterritorial emissions. It further critiques current climate finance, noting a gap in adaptation funding and a reliance on loans over grants, while providing a directory of independent tools like the Climate Action Tracker and Oxfam's shadow reports to monitor State performance.

The document emphasizes that adopting a human rights approach to climate action is essential for protecting those on the frontlines of climate impacts, including indigenous peoples and local communities. It traces the progressive recognition of human rights within the UNFCCC, from the 2010 Cancun Agreements to the 2015 Paris Agreement, and highlights the role of updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in promoting public participation. For the SB50 negotiations, it specifically identifies the need for social and environmental safeguards in Article 6 mechanisms to avoid the rights infringements seen under the Clean Development Mechanism, and notes the importance of reviewing the Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damage and the Gender Action Plan.

The report serves as a reference tool listing over 60 UNFCCC decisions and reports that acknowledge the role of Indigenous Peoples and their traditional knowledge in climate mitigation and adaptation. It highlights the establishment of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform and recalls the minimum standards for survival and dignity set by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The report examines the evolving relationship between human rights and the international climate regime, specifically the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement. It identifies a trend of increasing explicit and implicit references to human rights in COP decisions, though it notes these are often disproportionately linked to adaptation rather than mitigation. The document details how procedural rights, the rights of indigenous peoples, gender equality, and the right to food are being integrated into climate policy. It also reviews national-level implementation through Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and national communications, finding that while many countries reference human rights, there is a lack of harmonized guidance. The report argues that a rights-based approach is essential to increase climate ambition and protect vulnerable populations from both climate impacts and poorly designed climate responses.

The statement evaluates the conclusion of COP24, noting that while negotiations were contentious, they established a foundation for the Paris Agreement's rulebook and set the stage for updated national climate commitments by 2020. It highlights progress on the Adaptation Fund and the agreement to set a new post-2020 finance goal, while criticizing the United States, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait for opposing the IPCC 1.5°C report. The author emphasizes that the world has not yet begun to aggressively reduce global emissions and calls for bold action from heads of state.

The COP 24 Climate Resilience roundtable emphasized the urgent need to scale up investments in adaptation and resilience, particularly for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The document outlines a roadmap of priority actions from 2020 to 2050, advocating for people-centered, nature-based solutions and the development of shared resilience metrics to attract private sector capital. Key commitments include the LDC Initiative for Effective Adaptation and Resilience (LIFE-AR) and various financial pledges from the Nordic Development Fund and Bank of America.

The report details the efforts and challenges of integrating human rights into the COP-24 outcomes, noting that while procedural participation in NDC planning was strengthened, substantive human rights references were often diluted or removed from final texts. It also documents the restriction of civil liberties by the Polish government during the conference and highlights specific policy areas, such as the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform and the Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss & Damage, where human rights frameworks were maintained or advanced.

The Bangkok Climate Change Conference focused on operationalizing the Paris Agreement through the PAWP, covering mitigation, adaptation, finance, and transparency. While some technical progress was made in streamlining negotiating texts, overall progress was characterized as "uneven," with significant deadlocks remaining over climate finance (Article 9.5) and the principle of differentiation in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).