Climate action is "dangerously insufficient," warn the United Nations as the threshold of 1.5 °C of warming is set to be exceeded.

The UN Environment Programme's latest report highlights the growing gap between state commitments and the goals of the Paris Agreement, particularly the 1.5 °C limit. With COP31 approaching, the report emphasizes the need for significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate the impacts of climate change. It acknowledges that temporarily exceeding the 1.5 °C threshold is now unavoidable, urging countries to intensify their efforts to minimize the duration and extent of this exceedance. The report warns that each additional degree of warming exacerbates the already severe consequences of the climate crisis, risking irreversible changes to ecosystems.