The 2015 Paris Agreement: What It Means for the European Union’s Climate Policies. College of Europe Policy Brief #2.16, January 2016

Schnuz, Simon (2016) The 2015 Paris Agreement: What It Means for the European Union’s Climate Policies. College of Europe Policy Brief #2.16, January 2016. [Policy Paper]

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Abstract

Executive Summary > The Paris climate summit in December 2015 resulted in an Agreement that pragmatically combines the science-driven demand for ambitious global emissions reduction objectives with key Parties’ continued desire to protect their sovereignty. Its implementation will depend on a quasi-constant negotiation process over the coming years. > The constructive role played by the European Union during the negotiations of this Agreement allowed it to recover from the reputational damage suffered at the 2009 Copenhagen summit. > Over the coming years, the EU will need to sustain and reinforce this role to contribute to ensuring the environmentally effective implementation of the Agreement. > To this end, both EU internal and external climate policies and related policies need to be strategically geared toward a high level of ambition, based on solid support and ownership from its member states.

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