New DDP report calls for 'innovative international cooperation' to reach Paris Agreement goals, as COP28 starts this week

PARIS, Dec. 3, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Traditional approaches to international cooperation are insufficient to reach Paris Agreement objectives and innovative solutions must start happening, according to a new report published by the Deep Decarbonization Pathways (DDP) Initiative.

Global South countries have ambitious given their capacities, but they need to accelerate their transitions to net-zero while achieving development objectives.

A critical innovation would be to put countries' needs at the center of international cooperation processes. Country representation must be ensured from the start and at all stages of the design of cooperative solutions.

"We can only achieve the Paris Agreement goal if all countries can do more. For Global South countries, taking more ambitious climate actions while pursuing development depends whether innovations in international cooperation allow to prioritize countries' needs," said Henri Waisman, director of the DDP Initiative.

The report proposes concrete innovations in international cooperation in three sectors.

The steel sector can transform in a way that contributes to global deep decarbonization, supports local employment and industrialization in developing countries, and maintains competitiveness for current producers. This can happen under a revised approach to current distribution of incentives, international value chains and trade in primary steel production.

Changes to national freight transport - producing goods more sustainably and closer to consumers, developing better railways and multi-modal infrastructures, and making rail services more competitive than road services - contribute to development and deep decarbonization. Directing international finance for industries and transport infrastructure, and changing commercial and trade agreements are needed to make these changes happen.

The agriculture and land use sector must take into account objectives around mitigation, adaptation and resilience, biodiversity, food security and rural livelihoods. This holistic approach requires improving the governance of the land use system, promoting lessons sharing on policies and implementation, and implementing new finance mechanisms and trade arrangements to encourage the restoration of degraded forests or pastures, the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices, and more diversified land uses such as agroforestry.

"We need innovative international cooperation to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. COP28 must send a clear political signal and catalyze technical and organizational changes, in all sectors and all countries. It is a question of trust and confidence between North and South, and a matter of efficiency for the fight against climate disaster," said Sebastien Treyer, Executive Director of IDDRI.

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Media contact:
Renee Karunungan
renee.karunungan@sciencespo.fr 
https://ddpinitiative.org/ddp-annual-report-2023/