In an unprecedented display of multilateral cooperation, leaders of the world's twenty largest economies have signed a binding climate covenant that climate scientists are calling "the most consequential environmental agreement since Paris."
The accord, reached after seventy-two hours of intense negotiations at the summit in Johannesburg, commits all G20 nations to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 — ten years ahead of the previous target — and establishes a $500 billion Green Transition Fund to support developing nations in their energy transformation.
The Details
Central to the agreement is a phased elimination of fossil fuel subsidies, to be completed by 2030, and a mandatory transition to renewable energy sources for at least 60% of national electricity grids by 2035. Verification mechanisms, long a sticking point in climate negotiations, will be managed through a newly created independent International Climate Accountability Council.