Energy producers and consumers demonstrate that a near-zero carbon economy is the growth story of the future, taking major steps to drive the breakthroughs needed by 2030 to reach net zero by 2050. The expertise of Indigenous Peoples will also be spotlighted today, in an effort to drive an inclusive, just, resilient and nature-positive transition.?
Indigenous Peoples and local communities
- The COP28 Presidency, the High-Level Champions and the UN Climate Change will hold a dialogue
with Indigenous Peoples
today to foster an open discussion on mobilizing a just and inclusive transition and expectations for the COP28 outcomes. Participants can share thoughts on how to ensure that Indigenous Peoples’ values and knowledge systems are recognized and applied, and identify concrete steps toward recognizing leadership roles in the transition.
- Cement breakthrough: Among these new Breakthrough Agenda partnerships, Canada and the UAE are launching a cement breakthrough today. The breakthrough aims to focus the industry on speeding up decarbonization by sharing best practices, work on policy and standards, and supporting new innovation in emerging areas like carbon capture and storage or utilization, or circular economy.
- Renewables & efficiency: The Global Renewables Alliance and the Marrakech Partnership will today convene businesses, investors, subnational governments and others to discuss their implementation of the pledge to triple global renewables generation capacity by 2030 and double the rate of global energy efficiency improvements to 2030 signed by 118 countries
so far. This is aligned with a global call to triple renewable energy
endorsed by 250 organizations.?
- LatAm & the Caribbean renewables: Countries involved in the Latin American and Caribbean renewables hub RELAC
are raising the target for renewable energy in total electricity generation to 80% by 2030, from 70%, and aim to reach a share of renewable energy in the total energy supply of at least 36% by 2030.?
- Smart electrification: The High-Level Champions and the Marrakech Partnership are today mobilizing businesses, investors, cities and regions to increase the share of electricity in energy consumption from 20% to 30% by 2030. This is a critical vector to decarbonizing energy systems, increasing efficiency and enabling the tripling of renewables in line with International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)’s World Energy Transition Outlook to 1.5C
.
- Utilities for Zero Alliance: 32 partners, including 26 utilities and power companies serving nearly 250 million customers, are launching an alliance today to accelerate the shift to net zero emissions before 2050. The Utilities for Net Zero Alliance will focus on using innovative policies and renewable energy integration to support wider decarbonization, to advance electrification, renewables-ready grids, and clean energy deployment in line with 2030 Breakthroughs and the Sharm El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda. Ten of them are Race to Zero members. The Alliance is led by the Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, with IRENA serving as secretariat and supported by the High-Level Champions.
- Hydrogen: More than 60 key stakeholders from the hydrogen sector will today unveil a joint agreement on the responsible deployment of renewables-based hydrogen, codifying 30 principles and standards on nature-positive, climate-aligned, and equitable hydrogen development.?
- Green hydrogen in Brazil: The EU has pledged
to invest in a 10 gigawatt green hydrogen and ammonia production facility in the Brazilian state of Piauí, as part of the bloc's plan to invest US$2 billion in the hydrogen value chain. The production will be shipped to southern Europe.?
- Cutting methane: A new 2030 Breakthrough will be launched today with key energy stakeholders to bring businesses, investors, cities and regions together to cut methane emissions from oil and gas by at least three-quarters by 2030, compared to 2020 levels. This brings the private sector and subnational governments in to support the COP28 Presidency’s call
for the oil and gas industry to zero-out methane emissions.?
- Global Cooling Pledge: The COP28 Presidency and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP)-led Cool Coalition will launch the Global Cooling Pledge
, endorsed by over 60 countries, to raise ambition and cooperation through collective targets on improving energy efficiency and climate-friendly approaches, while increasing access to sustainable cooling for the most vulnerable. Cities are joining the pledge as City Champions of the Subnational Commitments. The pledge also recognizes the essential role of the private sector, development banks, investors and philanthropy in implementation. The High-Level Champions are rallying non-State actors to support the implementation of the pledge through Race to Resilience.
- Cooling for Resilience: In partnership with UNEP, cooling has been embedded into the Sharm El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda
as a key 2030 adaptation outcome to support grid infrastructure resilience by reducing electricity consumption for cooling by approximately 30%, along with new energy resilience outcomes.?
- Collaboration to deliver just energy transitions: As a key outcome from consultations during the Regional Climate Weeks, the Just Energy Transition Collaboration Dialogues co-hosted with UNFCCC and the High-Level Champions will today discuss the Just Energy Transitions Collaborative Framework to accelerate the development of energy projects with direct impact on local communities.
- Steel standards: In an important step towards unlocking the demand for low-carbon steel, organizations are also launching Steel Standards Principles under the Breakthrough Agenda. This sets common principles for the alignment of emissions measurement standards for steel to accelerate the shift to near-zero industry. Partners include Responsible Steel, CEM Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative, World Trade Organization, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), International Energy Agency, and World Steel Association.
- Near-zero shipping for steel: Shipping can contribute to steel sector decarbonization by adopting green steel that is aligned with the Science Based Targets initiative’s sector guidance. Collaboration between shipping and steel stakeholders is essential in fostering the adoption of green steel by the shipping industry, as will be discussed at a Marrakech Partnership event on energy and industry today. Shipping is a significant demand sector for green steel – if new-build ships used green steel they could save 800 million tonnes of CO2 between 2024-2050.
- Financing net zero industries: UNIDO is launching a finance platform today to fund net zero emissions industries in developing countries. This will provide financial and technical assistance to developing countries through partnerships with developed countries. As part of the platform, Brazil, the UK, the Leadership Group for Industry Transition and UNIDO have launched the Brazil Industrial Decarbonisation Hub
to mobilize support for the country’s transition.
- Responsible mining in Africa: In an effort to expand engagement in Africa, the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) has put out a call to action
inviting a state-owned enterprise that produces transition minerals to show leadership and become the first to undergo an independent IRMA audit. Africa has vast reserves of transition minerals such as cobalt, manganese, and platinum, and governments, businesses, investors, NGOs, affected communities, and workers are calling for more responsible management of the mining sector.
- Race to Zero: 20% of all supply-side actors by revenue in most major sectors of the economy have now joined the Race to Zero campaign, marking a breakthrough level of ambition, according to the progress report coming out on Wednesday. That includes nearly 30% of transport sector revenue committed to the campaign, as well as 612 food and agriculture businesses – up by 76% from 2022. It also includes over 70 built environment organizations with US$45 billion of combined revenue.?
- Race to Zero Partner Japan Climate Initiative has today released
a proposal to introduce carbon pricing that could halve the country's emissions by 2030. It follows a call from over 300 non-State actors for stronger climate pricing, implementing Race to Zero’s 5th P (Persuade).?
- Light industry: Industries such as ICT & mobile, pharmaceuticals, and retail are leading initiatives to drive the availability and adoption of renewables, as well as driving industry-wide energy efficiency, and building global sector resilience. Among them, the Pharma CONVERGE initiative launches today, with health sector businesses aligning the global pharmaceutical supply chain with the Race to Zero and Sharm El-Sheikh Adaptation Agenda outcomes.?
About the High-Level Champions
Created under the Paris Agreement, the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions have a mandate to connect the work of national governments with voluntary and collaborative action taken by cities, regions, businesses, investors and civil society worldwide. Through the Race to Zero
and Race to Resilience
campaigns, the Champions are mobilizing robust, science-based commitments and actions to reduce emissions, build resilience and end nature loss in line with limiting global warming to 1.5C. For more news from COP28, visit climatechampions.unfccc.team
.?
