A guide to key international climate change agreements and terminology (UK focus)

Preparing for COP26: understanding references to key #NetZero and #ClimateChange agreements and terminology

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A guide to key international climate change agreements and terminology (UK focus)

A guide to key international climate change agreements and terminology (UK focus)

Preparing for COP26: understanding references to key #NetZero and #ClimateChange agreements and terminology

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November 9, 2021

The UK is hosting the next UN Framework Convention on Climate Change "Conference of the Parties" (COP26) between 31 October 2021 and 12 November 2021 in Glasgow. During these two weeks, international representatives will negotiate on key issues such as targets to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.

The effects of climate change are being felt across the world and most people now understand the urgency driving the COP26 negotiations. However, the background to COP26 is a complex mix of international agreements and domestic policies, legislation and regulation. This guide contains short explanations to help you better understand references made during the COP26 proceedings as well as links for those who want to find out more.

This guide provides a snapshot only of each agreement, term etc. For advice on how these agreements, legislation and policies affect UK businesses, or on how your business can address environmental, social and governmental (ESG) issues, please get in touch with your usual Dentons contact.

For further information, see our Achieving Net Zero: UK Construction Focus webpage.

Agreement / acronym / legislation etc.	What is it / what does it mean?
Aarhus Convention (EU)	The Aarhus Convention is The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters. The convention was adopted on 25 June 1998 in the Danish city of Aarhus (Århus) at the Fourth Ministerial Conference as part of the "Environment for Europe" process. It came into force on 30 October 2001 (see the UNECE Convention website). (Source) As the preamble to the Aarhus Convention notes, there is an overlap between environmental and human rights protection – "adequate protection of the environment is essential to human well-being and the enjoyment of basic human rights, including the right to life itself". As well as the obvious link between climate change and other forms of environmental harm and widely acknowledged human rights such as the right to life, there is also growing recognition of an international human right to a clean and healthy environment (see, for example, The Escazú Agreement (2018, in force 2021) among Latin American and Caribbean states). On 14 October 2020, the European Commission adopted a legislative proposal amending the Aarhus Regulation No. 1367/2006 to allow for better public scrutiny of EU acts affecting the environment (source).
Annex B Parties	Annex B Parties refers to those parties listed in Annex B of the Kyoto Protocol. See also "Kyoto Protocol". (Note that this list is similar, but not identical, to the list in Annex I to the UNFCCC. Although "Annex I" and "Annex B" are often used interchangeably, some confusion can arise because, for example, the US is listed in Annex B but never ratified the Kyoto Principle, because the Kyoto Principle itself refers to "Parties included in Annex I", and because some parties are listed in Annex I but not Annex B (e.g. Turkey).)
Annex I Parties	Refers to those parties listed in Annex I to the UNFCCC.
Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanisms (CBAM)	The Fit for 55 Package introduced a proposal to introduce a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Under this mechanism: a carbon price would be applied to imports of certain goods into the EU, based on measurement of the GHG emissions associated with their production (or default assumptions about such emissions where accurate measurements are not available); the price would be paid in certificates, each of which would represent a tonne of CO₂ equivalent emissions embodied in goods; the obligation to buy certificates in respect of a given quantity of goods would be reduced in proportion to the level of any carbon price that had been paid in respect of it in its country of origin; and the certificates would be purchased from member state authorities at prices set by reference to the average price of EU allowances in EU ETS auctions. Amongst the products planned to be within CBAM's scope are iron and steel, cement, aluminium, electricity and some fertilisers. It is intended that the CBAM regime should enter into force as soon as 2023, but that it would function only as a reporting mechanism for the first three years. The draft Regulation leaves many details of implementation to be worked out in subordinate legislation (i.e. delegated and implementing acts). These include the phasing in of the obligations to purchase certificates, which would be related to a parallel phasing out of the allocation of free allowances for EU producers of goods subject to CBAM.
Certified emission reduction (CER) credits	See Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) below.
Clean Energy Package (CEP)	The EU adopted the Clean Energy Package (CEP) in 2018-2019. CEP, amongst other things, overhauls the 20/20/20 package for the coming decade (2020-2030). In 2014, the European Council endorsed a "2030 Framework for Energy and Climate" which included a variety of EU-wide targets for 2030. These provided the starting point for the targets in the CEP measures. The most important was the target of a 40% reduction in GHG emissions as against 1990 levels, which became the centrepiece of the EU's Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement in 2016. CEP was put forward as a set of draft legislative measures in 2016, as part of the Juncker Commission's policy of "Energy Union". (The Commission has said that the Energy Union is about giving "EU consumers – households and businesses – secure, sustainable, competitive and affordable energy". See https://ec.europa.eu/energy/topics/energy-strategy/energy-union_en.)
Climate Change Act	The Climate Change Act 2008 was the starting point for UK climate change law and the first national climate law of its kind. It set legally binding targets for net UK emissions of certain GHGs in the UK. It sets up a cycle of Climate Change Risk Assessments and National Adaptation Programmes. (See the Climate Change Committee (CCC)'s webpage: The need to act.) The guiding principle of the 2008 Act was to "ensure that the net UK carbon account for the year 2050 is at least 80% lower than the 1990 baseline". A duty is imposed on the Secretary of State (SoS) (i.e. the government) to achieve this. The SoS is also to set a series of "carbon budgets" in legislation taking into account a number of factors, including the advice of the CCC. The Act also empowers the SoS and devolved authorities to make secondary legislation about "trading schemes" to limit or encourage the limitation of activities that emit GHGs or that cause or contribute (directly or indirectly) to GHG emissions, or to encourage activities that cause or contribute (directly or indirectly) to reductions in GHG emissions or their removal from the atmosphere. Wider targets on nature, resources, water and air quality are dealt with in the [UK] Environmental Bill. The Carbon Budget Order 2021 (SI 2021/750), which came into force on 24 June 2021, is ambitious and sets the sixth carbon budget for the 2033-2037 budgetary period at 965 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)	The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) (see Article 12 of the Kyoto Protocol) is a device by which Annex I Parties can invest in emission reduction projects in other Parties. Such projects generate certified emission reduction (CER) credits. Those credits accrue to the financing Party and the country invested in gets the practical benefit of the project. ACDM project must provide emission reductions that are additional to what would otherwise have occurred. A small percentage of the proceeds from the CDM is the major source of income for the UNFCCC Adaptation Fund. Note: the CDM is one of the three Kyoto Principle mechanisms setting up systems for trading emissions allowances (and which use trade unit "AAUs"); investing in emission reduction projects to generate CER credits; allowing Annex I Parties to invest in each other's emission reduction projects and generate emission reduction units (ERUs); and net removals of carbon and the issue of "removal units" (RMUs) through which Annex B Parties can transfer, acquire, cancel and retire RMUs to comply with their KP commitments.
Commitment period	Annex I Parties must report their annual emissions of the Kyoto Protocol GHGs by 15 April of each year. This process is governed by a highly complex compliance regime. The ultimate sanction for failure for a country that fails to meet its assigned emission reduction target is to increase the amounts by which it must reduce their emissions in the next commitment period. In summary, for each tonne of emissions above the target amount in the previous period, it must reduce its total by 1.3 tonnes. The first commitment period set by the Kyoto Protocol was 2008-2012. The second commitment period ran from 2013 until 31 December 2020 and the third began 1 January 2021.
Conference of the Parties (COP)	The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the decision-making body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that has been held annually since 1995 in Berlin. It has been influential in shaping global policy on tackling climate change, including the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and the 2015 Paris Agreement. The COP was established by the UNFCCC and its regular, numbered meetings (such as the 2021 meeting in Glasgow – "COP26") have become the centrepiece of global climate diplomacy. The COP has no settled rules for voting or procedure. In practice, this means that decisions can only be securely adopted by unanimity.
COP26	Five years after the Paris Agreement was signed, the COP26 summit is being held in Glasgow. Its proceedings will: measure the international progress made in tackling the climate emergency; demonstrate that "green" economic stimulus packages represent the most efficient way to enable the global economy to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic; and continue to focus on establishing a framework for limiting global warming to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels. COP26 will take place in Glasgow from 31 October to 12 November 2021. The UK, which holds the Presidency for COP26, has set four broad goals: getting countries to commit to net zero by mid-century, and to set 2030 emissions targets that align with that objective in their NDCs (i.e. reflect the view that GHG emissions must halve by 2030 to make net zero by 2050 possible). Phasing out coal, investment in renewables and electric vehicles (EVs) and halting of fossil fuel subsidies were all highlighted as priorities; picking up the pace on adaptation, enabling and encouraging countries affected by climate change to build defences, warning systems and resilient infrastructure; increasing funding to support these aims, making good on the US$100 billion goal; and closing off the outstanding elements of the Paris Rulebook, and accelerating delivery of the Paris Agreement Goals through collaboration between governments, businesses and civil society. Key focus areas of the Paris Rulebook include the need to reach agreement on the Paris Agreement Article 6 mechanisms (see "emission reduction" and "joint implementation"), and on reporting timetables and formats. See "Katowice" for more on the Paris Rulebook. You can read more about the UK's plans for COP26 here: https://ukcop26.org/.
Copenhagen Accord	The Copenhagen Accord made improvements to the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol and the setting of future ambitions, including giving prominence to the 2^°C and 1.5^°C limits on average global temperature increases, and the US$100 billion of finance for developing countries.
Decision 1/CP.21	Decision 1/CP.21 combined with the Paris Agreement amounts to a significant agenda for climate action, at both national and international level. The key innovations were: Quantified goals: specific reference in the Paris Agreement (Article 2) to the need to keep global temperature increases above pre-industrial levels to well below 2^°C, and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5^°C. The Parties' GHG emissions are to peak as soon as possible and they are to "achieve a balance between anthropogenic emissions and removals by sinks of GHGs" – i.e. net zero – "in the second half of the century"; Nationally determined contributions (NDCs): a concept introduced to help achieve the objectives of the Paris Agreement. Each Party determines its own NDC and pursues domestic mitigation measures. NDCs can be updated at any time, but must be updated (and improved) every five years; better systems of "voluntary cooperation" / carbon markets; help for developing countries: starting with the signing of the UNFCCC in 1992, there has been an emphasis on the obligation of developed countries to assist developing countries, in particular financially, to address climate change. The Paris Agreement provides financial support, technology transfer and capacity-building; REDD+: strengthening of the existing programme for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation of forests in developing countries and the sustainable management of forests / enhancement and conservation of forest carbon stocks in such countries; and adaptation, loss and damage: the Paris Agreement required steps to be taken to address these.
Doha Amendment	At the 2012 COP, the UNFCCC Parties agreed: the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, that revised targets; and to work towards a universal climate change agreement covering all countries from 2020, which was to be adopted in 2015. Note, however, that the Doha Amendment would only enter into force 90 days after 75% of the Kyoto Protocol parties had ratified it – a stage that was only reached on 31 December 2020, the last date of the proposed second Kyoto Protocol commitment period.
Emission reduction units (ERUs)	See Joint Implementation below.
ESG	Environment, Social and Governmental issues on which you can read more here: The "ESG" agenda (UK Construction focus).
Espoo Convention	The Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (Espoo, 1991) (the Espoo (EIA) Convention) is one of a series of five United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) conventions that: "sets out the obligations of [UNECE] Parties to assess the environmental impact of certain activities at an early stage of planning. The Espoo Convention also lays down the general obligation of [EU] States to notify and consult each other on all major projects under consideration that are likely to have a significant adverse environmental impact across boundaries …" See the UNECE website and the UNECE "talking head" video presentation.
EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS)	EU Directive 2003/87/EC provided for the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The EU ETS has subsequently been amended several times and supplemented by other EU ETS legislation. It is the EU's primary means of ensuring that it meets its GHG emissions reduction commitments under the Kyoto Protocol and, going forward, the Paris Agreement. It is a "cap and trade" carbon pricing regime that applies to the 27 countries of the EU, plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. In principle, it covers the same range of GHGs as the Kyoto Protocol (see below).
EV	Electric Vehicles
Fit for 55 Package	The Fit for 55 Package is a series of draft measures published on 14 July 2021, reflecting the EU's ambition to reach "climate neutrality" by 2050, and a 55% GHG emissions reduction by 2030. The Fit for 55 Package proposals were accompanied by a Commission Communication and represent an early fulfilment of the European Commission's obligations, under Article 4(3) of the European Climate Law, to review existing EU legislation and bring forward measures to enable the achievement of the climate neutrality objective. The Fit for 55 Package proposals mark: a significant expansion of the scope of EU climate legislation (introducing new forms of regulation and extending the reach of existing instruments); and a significant intensification of existing EU legislation, including the CEP and EU ETS. The most conspicuous new development in the Package is the Proposal for a Regulation establishing a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM).
Glasgow	See COP26.
GHG	Greenhouse gas emissions. See "Kyoto Protocol" below for the list of GHGs covered.
ICTU	The commitment under the Paris Agreement for parties to provide "information to facilitate clarity, transparency and understanding".
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)	The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was jointly established by the World Meteorological Organization and the UN Environment Programme in 1988. It is the United Nations' body for assessing the science related to climate change. The IPCC issued its first Assessment Report (AR1) and negotiations began on the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1990. IPCC publications include: a special report on Global Warming of 1.5^°C in 2018; Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis (the sixth assessment report published in August 2021).
International Emissions Trading (IET)	Under the Kyoto Protocol, each country has a quantity of emissions that it is permitted to emit in a given period. By virtue of KP Article 17, to the extent that a country does not "need" its full allowance, it may trade units (AAUs) with another country whose emissions would otherwise exceed its permitted amount. The International Emissions Trading (IET) is one of the three Kyoto Protocol mechanisms which set up systems for trading emissions allowances (using trade unit "AAUs"): investing in emission reduction projects to generate certified emission reduction (CER) credits; allowing Annex I Parties to invest in each other's emission reduction projects and generate emission reduction units (ERUs); and net removals of carbon and the issue of "removal units" (RMUs) through which Annex B Parties can transfer, acquire, cancel and retire RMUs to comply with their KP commitments.
Joint Implementation	Article 6 of the Kyoto Protocol provided for Joint Implementation (JI), and allowed Annex I Parties to invest in each other's emission reduction projects, and to generate emission reduction units (ERUs). The JI mechanism is one of the three Kyoto Protocol mechanisms which set up systems for trading emissions allowances (using trade unit "AAUs"): investing in emission reduction projects to generate certified emission reduction (CER) credits; allowing Annex I Parties to invest in each other's emission reduction projects and generate emission reduction units (ERUs); and net removals of carbon and the issue of "removal units" (RMUs) through which Annex B Parties can transfer, acquire, cancel and retire RMUs to comply with their KP commitments.
Katowice	At COP24 in Katowice, agreement was reached on the so-called "Paris Rulebook" including: the technical aspects of information provision around NDCs (including flexibility in reporting for less developed countries, to reflect concerns that they may lack the necessary governance capacity to monitor and track emissions); a process for establishing new targets on finance from 2025 onwards; and some of the procedures for the "global stocktake" that will assess the effectiveness of climate action in 2023.
Kyoto Protocol	By 1995, the UNFCCC parties had concluded that their commitments under the UNFCCC were inadequate. In 1997, they adopted a protocol to the UNFCCC signed in Kyoto on 11 December 1997 (the Kyoto Protocol), which came into force in 2005. The Parties to the Kyoto Protocol are mostly the same as for the UNFCCC, save for the US and (since 2012) Canada. Those countries that have taken on emission reduction commitments under the Kyoto Protocol are listed in its Annex B (along with the US, which has not ratified the Kyoto Protocol). In the words of the UN: the Kyoto Protocol"operationalises" the UNFCCCby committing the Annex B Parties to "limit and reduce" GHG emissionsin accordance with agreed individual targets; whereas the UNFCCC "only asks those countries to adopt policies and measures on mitigation and to report periodically". Specifically, the KP focuses on CO₂, methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), sulphur hexafluoride (SF₆) and nitrogen trifluoride (NF₃). Annex B Parties are to ensure that their aggregate anthropogenic GHG emissions do not exceed specified absolute quantities of CO₂ equivalent emissions, and to reduce their emissions by specified percentages compared to a baseline (in most cases, 1990) by 2008-2012. See also the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, which revised targets for a new period ending in 2020. Annex B Parties are to achieve their agreed reductions in emissions primarily by adopting "policies and measures" to do so at a national level, in areas such as energy efficiency, renewables, protection and enhancement of GHG sinks, phasing out fiscal incentives in sectors that emit GHGs, development and use of CO₂ sequestration. However, they can also make use of the three so-called "flexibility mechanisms" provided for in outline in the Kyoto Protocol and in more detail in the Marrakesh Accords and other CMP decisions that provide for its implementation. COP26 includes the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol.
Madrid (COP25)	At COP25 in Madrid, the Parties recognised the need to deliver deeper cuts in GHG emissions and restrict global warming to 1.5^°C. Warming of more than this level has increasingly come to be seen as the "acceptable" limit, following the IPCC's special report on Global Warming of 1.5^°C, published in 2018.
Marrakesh Accords	The Marrakesh Accords were "adopted by CMP 1 in Montreal, Canada, in December 2005. They include a set of monitoring and compliance procedures for the first commitment period (2008-2012) to: enforce the Protocol’s rules; address any compliance problems; and avoid any error in calculating emissions data and accounting for transactions under the three Kyoto Protocol mechanisms (emissions trading, clean development mechanism and joint implementation) and activities related to land use, land use change and forestry". For the second commitment period (2013-2020), a series of later decisions built upon the CMP 1 decisions and introduced the necessary updates to operationalise monitoring and compliance.
Meeting of the Parties (CMP)	The COP is known as the "CMP" when it also serves as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol.
Montreal Protocol	The Montreal Protocol in 1987 addressed a large group of "ozone-depleting substances", which are a subset of GHGs. The Montreal Protocol has been implemented in the EU by a series of Regulations that in some respects have gone further than the Protocol requires. (See for example, Regulation (EC) No 1005/2009, which in 2020 was the subject of a consultation on possible ways to improve its operation.) See also the Multilateral Fund.
Multilateral Fund	The Multilateral Fund for the implementation of the Montreal Protocol was set up to provide assistance for developing country parties in programmes to phase out the [GHG emitting] substances on which the Montreal Protocol focused.
National Design Guide and National Model Design Code	A UK Local Authority framework for including climate and environmental issues at planning stages. See also the UK National Design Guide that sets out the 10 characteristics of good design and the National Model Design Code, which expands on those characteristics.
Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC)	The Paris Agreement addressed the following problems that arose from the Kyoto Protocol regime of binding targets for GHG emission reduction: it covered only a subset of countries that were developed economies in 1997; and its top-down approach meant that any increase in ambition would be slow to materialise. The Paris Agreement introduced the concept of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) towards achieving its objectives. In summary: each Party to the Paris Agreement determines its own NDC and does not have to agree with it or have it approved by anybody else; Parties are then to "pursue domestic mitigation measures, with the aim of achieving the objectives" of their NDCs, and to update their NDCs so that successive NDCs "represent a progression…and reflect its highest possible ambition", as well as its "common but differentiated responsibilities [(CBDR)] and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances"; Parties in developed countries are to "continue taking the lead by undertaking economy-wide absolute emission reduction targets. These developing country Parties should continue enhancing their mitigation efforts, and are encouraged to move over time towards economy-wide emission reduction or limitation targets in the light of different national circumstances…; Parties are also encouraged, but not obliged, to produce "long-term strategies" (LTSs) that frame their NDCs in the context of their long-term planning and development priorities; NDCs can be updated at any time, but must be updated (and improved) every five years. By removing the threat of enforcement under a binding international agreement, the NDC regime makes it more likely that those who would either not sign up to quantified emissions reduction commitments (particularly ambitious ones) under something like the Kyoto Protocol will adopt the kind of policies and measures at the national level that are necessary to prevent dangerous climate change. As part of its commitment under the Paris Agreement to provide "information to facilitate clarity, transparency and understanding" (ICTU), the UK announced its new NDC under the Paris Agreement to the UNFCCC on 12 December 2020. It commits the UK to reducing economy-wide GHG emissions by at least 68% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels.
OECD	The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The OECD is "an international organisation that works to build better policies for better lives". On 27 October 2021, members of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) issued a joint Declaration ahead of COP26 "committing to align official development assistance (ODA), which totalled US$161 billion in 2020, with the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change". (See OECD Development Assistance Committee commits to align development co-operation with the goals of the Paris Agreement.)
Paris Agreement (COP21)	The Paris Agreement was adopted at the 21st Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21), signed in Paris on 12 December 2015. The Paris Agreement set a significant agenda for action including the following key innovations: quantified goals nationally determined contributions (NDCs) better systems of "voluntary cooperation" / carbon markets help for developing countries REDD+ adaptation, loss and damage See: https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/the-paris-agreement.
Paris Rulebook	The Parties agreed to develop and finalise the Paris Rulebook at COP21 in Paris. At COP24 in Katowice, the Parties agreed on the following aspects of the Paris Rulebook: the technical aspects of information provision around NDCs (including flexibility in reporting for less developed countries, to reflect concerns that they may lack the necessary governance capacity to monitor and track emissions); a process for establishing new targets on finance from 2025 onwards to follow on from the current US$100 billion target; and some of the procedures for the "global stocktake" that will assess the effectiveness of climate action in 2023. One of the goals of COP26 for the UK presidency is to finalise the Paris Rulebook. See this explanation by the World Resources Institute and https://ukcop26.org/cop26-goals/collaboration/.
REDD+	The programme for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation of forests in developing countries and the sustainable management of forests / enhancement and conservation of forest carbon stocks in such countries.
Removal units (RMUs)	The Kyoto Protocol provides for the issue of "removal units" (RMUs) to Annex B Parties for net removals of carbon from certain land use, land use change and forestry* activities. Annex B Parties can transfer, acquire, cancel and retire RMUs to comply with their Kyoto Protocol commitments. (See The LULUCF Regulation* ((EU) 2018/841) which is concerned with emissions to, and removals from the atmosphere of CO₂, CH₄ and N₂O arising from afforested / deforested land, and managed cropland / grassland / forest land / wetland.)
Renewable Energy Directive 20/20/20 (RED I) And the Second RED of 2018/2001	20/20/20 refers to the EU Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC) (RED I) that set out to establish: "mandatory national targets consistent with a 20% share of energy from renewable sources and a 10% share of energy from renewable sources in transport in [EU] energy consumption by 2020". Reflecting the different circumstances of member states, the national targets ranged from 11% (Luxembourg) to 49% (Sweden). These targets have been a major factor in the growth of renewable energy and the reduction in the costs of wind and solar technology that has come with increased scale. RED I is superseded by the second Renewable Energy Directive (RED II, Directive (EU) 2018/2001). RED II sets an overall EU-wide renewable energy target of 32% for 2030 and a transport sector target of 14%, but, unlike RED I, it does not include any legislative targets at national level. Member states must, however, not regress below specified baselines. There is a raft of obligations designed to facilitate renewables projects, including requirements to open subsidy schemes to cross-border participation, remove barriers to corporate power purchase agreements, simplify permitting procedures, and facilitate renewable self-consumption and electricity market participation by individual households and communities. There is more of an emphasis on renewable heating and cooling: EU member states are to "endeavour" to increase the share of renewables in this sector by an "indicative" 1.3%. Biomass sustainability criteria are tightened again (as on a number of occasions since RED I), and there are rules on non-biological renewable transport fuels (RFNBOs – e.g. those produced with green hydrogen). Directives (EU) 2018/844 and 2018/2002 amend the earlier EU Directives on energy performance of buildings and energy efficiency, respectively.
UK Climate Change Committee (CCC)	The UK Climate Change Committee (CCC) was set up as an independent, statutory body under the Climate Change Act 2008 to advise the UK and devolved governments (Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales) on emissions targets. It reports on progress made in both "reducing GHG emissions and preparing for and adapting to the impacts of climate change". The CCC's third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment Report of 16 June 2021 sets out statutory advice identifying priorities for government action in adapting to deal with the risks of climate change. The advice is informed by extensive new evidence gathered in an accompanying Technical Report, which identifies more than 60 risks and opportunities covering all aspects of UK life from our natural environment to our health, homes, transport, buildings, manufacturing and building processes, and the economy. The CCC's dedicated website (www.ukclimaterisk.org) hosts the materials from the Report. The CCC's annual 2021 Progress Report reported to Parliament on reducing emissions and its biennial assessment of progress in adapting to climate change.
UNFCCC	In 1990, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued its first Assessment Report (AR1), and negotiations began on the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC was adopted in New York on 9 May 1992. The UNFCCC is the "umbrella" under which subsequent UN climate diplomacy has played out. Article 2 of the UNFCCC states: "The ultimate objective of this Convention and any related legal instruments that the Conference of the Parties may adopt is to achieve, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Convention, stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Such a level should be achieved within a time frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner." (Note: the UNFCCC itself does not quantify what level of concentration of GHGs in the atmosphere would be classed as "dangerous".) The UNFCCC is, and was always intended to be, very much a framework, as its name suggests. The UNFCCC established the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP), whose regular, numbered meetings, such as COP26, have become the centrepiece of global climate diplomacy.
UNFCCC secretariat	The UNFCCC secretariat (UN Climate Change) is the United Nations entity established under Article 8 of the UNFCCC and tasked with supporting the global response to the threat of climate change. See: https://unfccc.int/about-us/about-the-secretariat.
UNFCCC Adaptation Fund	The UNFCCC Adaptation Fund (AF) "was established in 2001 to finance concrete adaptation projects and programmes in developing country Parties to the Kyoto Protocol that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change". The AF is supervised and managed by the Adaptation Fund Board (AFB). The AFB is composed of 16 members and 16 alternates and meets at least twice a year. A small percentage of the proceeds from the CDM is the major source of income for the UNFCCC Adaptation Fund.
20/20/20	See the Renewable Energy Directive 20/20/20 (RED I), above.