Dana Malcolm 

Staff Writer

December 11, 2023 – A major pledge was made by over 130 countries at COP 28 to triple the world’s renewable energy generation capacity to at least 11,000 Gigawatts (GW) by 2030 but The International Energy Agency (IEA) says even if every country keeps its word in full, it is only about 30 percent of what is needed to keep global warming below 1.5 C. Part of the problem is that most of the world’s top greenhouse gas emitters haven’t signed on, and some who have are notorious for turning their backs on their promises. 

The World Resources Institute lists China, the United States, India, the European Union, Russia, Japan, Brazil, Indonesia, and Japan, in that order, as the top emitters. Together, they contribute over two-thirds of global emissions. 

For each of these countries, electricity and heat production are the top causes of their massive emissions bills. Despite this, when the Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency Pledge was unveiled at COP28 with objectives to collectively double the global average annual rate of energy efficiency improvements from around 2% to over 4% every year until 2030, only four of the top nine (the US, EU, Japan, and Brazil) signed on.

It’s one reason why the pledge punches way below the level it needs to.

“As of Friday, December 8, around 130 countries had signed up to the pledge to triple global renewable power capacity by 2030 and double the annual rate of energy efficiency improvements every year to 2030. Those countries together account for 40% of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from fossil fuel combustion, 37% of total global energy demand, and 56% of global GDP,” the IEA says 

Without the top emitters doing their part the prognosis is grim. The IEA maintains while the pledges are positive steps forward they would not be nearly enough to move the world onto a path to reaching international climate targets, in particular the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C.

As for those who did sign on, that list included over 50 countries from the Global South (African, Pacific, Latin American, and Caribbean Countries) which are historically worse affected by climate change than the Global North.