Latest news with #ClimateChangePerformanceIndex2025
Hindustan Times
25-07-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Strengthening preparedness through sustained climate leadership
The climate crisis consistently amplifies weather-related disasters and vulnerability by undermining resilience-building efforts. The World Meteorological Organization projects that by 2100, extreme droughts could affect twice as many people, especially in the Global South, while shrinking water storage threatens rural livelihoods and drives migration. Sea level rise may endanger assets worth 20% of global GDP, with coastal flooding intensifying in Europe and Asia. Rising temperatures could expose 500 million more people to diseases like malaria by 2050, as biodiversity loss and urbanisation boost disease vectors. Wildfire seasons may extend by three months in vulnerable areas, and the most severe tropical cyclones are projected to occur twice as often under a 2.5°C warming scenario. Climate crisis. (AFP) Developing countries are at a critical juncture, facing both pressing development needs and the climate crisis challenges. Their development priorities include poverty alleviation, infrastructure expansion, health care, and education. As they strive for economic growth, the developing countries are also vulnerable to climate-related risks. This dual challenge demands integrated strategies that align climate resilience with inclusive development. It should be supported by adequate financing, technology transfer, and global cooperation. Countries have several international frameworks, such as the Paris Agreement and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, to harmonise climate crisis policies across countries, which will facilitate institutional coordination to implement climate-resilient strategies. The Climate Change Performance Index 2025, prepared by Germanwatch, reveals that no one country is doing enough to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. It monitors countries' climate actions in four categories: greenhouse gas emissions, renewable energy, energy use, and climate policy. According to Oxfam, the G20 is responsible for approximately 78% of GHG emissions, and these emissions are projected to increase by 10.6% by 2030. It also emphasises that the richest G7 and G20 countries must further strengthen their domestic climate action and significantly increase climate finance commitments. Many governments face significant challenges in advancing climate action due to limited political will, inadequate financial resources, and weak institutional coordination. Several studies have found that adaptation initiatives, such as early warning systems in countries like India and Bangladesh, have shown improvement. However, they lack sufficient integration of structural and social preparedness across policy sectors. Governments have demonstrated leadership by updating their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which include phasing out fossil fuel subsidies and scaling up renewable energy sources. NDCs reinforce global commitments, demonstrating that each country is committed to achieving the SDGs. It was supported by institutional leadership provided by UNDP's Climate Promise. For instance, all NDCs supported through it include energy-related goals or policies, while 90% also incorporate the agriculture sector. Achieving these goals not only addresses the climate crisis but also advances sustainable development objectives, such as improving energy access and ensuring food security. The IPCC, WMO, and UNFCCC continue to lead and support efforts by generating scientific consensus, facilitating dialogue, and monitoring global progress. G20 leadership in climate crisis action is crucial to meeting the 1.5 ℃ target. High-income G20 countries provide financial and technological support to lower-income countries in this effort. However, leadership in climate action is not just about formulating target goals and action plans. Most importantly, it is about delivering ambitious emission reduction targets, executing integrated strategies that address climate risk alongside national development, and strengthening international cooperation. Leadership with accountability to deliver promises requires implementing reports from independent climate commissions, regular stocktakes, and carbon pricing tools, among other measures. The OECD 2021 report states that local governments lack the authority and resources to implement adaptation plans at the local level. Local-level leadership in cities, municipalities, regions, and states is where the implementation of climate targets needs to be strengthened. These sub-national governments are at the forefront of addressing climate-related challenges. Local governments play a crucial role in achieving long-term sustainability through measures that promote low-emission and climate-resilient development. It cannot be done without empowering the local governments. Local leaders play a crucial role in translating climate goals into concrete actions, effectively bridging the gap between national commitments and implementation at the community level—through a global network of local governments that connects policy, knowledge sharing, and learning from one another. For example, the Climate Group's Under2Coalition of subnational governments seeks to accelerate policy adoption and enhance implementation by sharing global insights on successful and unsuccessful approaches. Others include America is All In, the UN-Habitat, the C40 global network of mayors, and the Global Covenant of Mayors. Addressing the climate crisis depends majorly on effective climate leadership delivering timely action with a commitment to fairness and concrete implementation. To secure a climate-resilient future, governments must strengthen their leadership, integrate systemic risk into national planning, and scale up comprehensive disaster and climate risk management across sectors. This requires aligning National Adaptation Plans and development strategies with robust risk analytics, inclusive governance, and measurable targets. Investing in resilient, low-carbon infrastructure and nature-based solutions is crucial, as is leveraging innovative, risk-informed financing and engaging the private sector to drive sustainable development. Empowering communities, primarily through gender equality, social protection, and a renewed social contract, is vital to ensure no one is left behind. Finally, public awareness must be driven by science-based communication, impact-based early warnings, and accessible climate information to shift behaviours and reduce vulnerabilities. This article is authored by Mehdi Hussain, former research associate, Indian Council of World Affairs, New Delhi.
Indian Express
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Knowledge Nugget: Climate Change Performance Index — A must know for UPSC Exam
Take a look at the essential events, concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here's your knowledge nugget for today on Climate Change Performance Index 2025. (Relevance: Climate change is an important topic, and UPSC has previously directly asked questions about the publication of important indices and reports. Thus, knowing about the Climate Change Performance Index 2025 becomes essential. Despite being the central topic of debate for decades, climate change continues to accelerate, global temperature continues to inch towards 'tipping points', and greenhouse gas concentrations rise at unprecedented levels. In this context, knowing the findings of the Climate Change Performance Index 2025 becomes important, as it provides the picture of the efforts of various countries in addressing the challenge of climate change. 1. The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) is an independent monitoring tool that tracks the climate mitigation performance of 63 countries and the EU. It aims to enhance transparency in international climate politics and enables comparison of climate mitigation efforts and progress made by individual countries. It is published annually since 2005. 2. The CCPI is published by Germanwatch, CAN International, and the NewClimate Institute. According to the official website of Germanwatch, the CCPI assesses each country's performance in four categories: (i) GHG Emissions (40% of the overall ranking), (ii) Renewable Energy (20%), (iii) Energy Use (20%) and (iv) Climate Policy (20%). 3. CCPI also answers the question of the extent to which each country is taking appropriate action in the areas of Emissions, Renewable energy and Energy use in order to achieve the climate goals set in Paris. 1. In CCPI 2025, the top three positions remain vacant, with no single country ranking 'very high' on all parameters for climate change mitigation in 2025. 2. Denmark has retained its rank as the top country (4th place) in the CCPI Index 2025, earning a very high rating in the renewable energy category, a high rating in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate policy, and a medium rating in energy use. 3. Denmark is followed by the Netherlands in 5th place and the United Kingdom in 6th place in this year's CCPI. Top 10 countries ranking high in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2025 Source: Climate Change Performance Index 2025. Note: None of the countries earned positions one through three. No country is doing enough to mitigate hazardous climate change. 4. Out of 64 countries responsible for over 90% of global GHG emissions, only 22 are making progress in the Climate Change Performance Index 2025, while 42 are falling behind. 5. Notably, G20 countries account for over 75% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, with 14 of their countries receiving a low or very low CCPI score; however, India and the United Kingdom are two G20 countries on track with low GHG emissions per capita. 6. Contrastingly, countries like China, the United States of America (USA), Canada, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and more have been ranked very low. Bottom 10 countries ranking low in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2025 Source: Climate Change Performance Index 2025 1. Slipping down to two positions, India ranks tenth in the 2025 CCPI, remaining among the top achievers. India ranks high in the GHG emissions and energy use categories, medium in climate policy, and low in renewable energy. 2. India has made significant progress in renewable energy policy, particularly through large-scale solar power plants and the implementation of the Rooftop Solar Scheme. Despite these encouraging achievements, India remains largely dependent on coal, and experts believe its phase-out is moving too slowly. 1. The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), a global group of scientific experts, released an assessment report on the interlinkages among biodiversity, water, food and health – known as the Nexus Report – last year. 2. This was a first-of-a-kind report looking at the interconnections between these multiple crises. The group examined five major challenges — climate change, biodiversity loss, food insecurity, water scarcity, and health risks. 3. The Nexus report highlighted the strong interlinkages between the five identified global challenges. Its key takeaway is that responses to all these challenges need to be harmonised so that positive actions taken on any one of these do not result in negative impacts on others, something that is quite possible, as exemplified in several current approaches. 4. For example, an attempt to scale up food production, a positive action to deal with hunger and malnutrition, could have the unintended consequence of increasing stress on land and water resources and biodiversity. 5. The report argues that it was important to adopt synergistic approaches that deliver benefits across the spectrum. Examples of such response measures included restoration of carbon-rich ecosystems such as forests, soils and mangroves, effective management of biodiversity to reduce risks of diseases spreading from animals to humans, promotion of sustainable healthy diets, and reliance on nature-based solutions wherever possible. Consider the following statements with regard to the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2025: 1. The top three positions remain vacant, with no single country ranking 'very high' on all parameters for climate change mitigation. 2. It assesses each country's performance in GHG Emissions, Renewable Energy, Energy Use and Climate Policy. 3. Denmark has retained its rank as the top country (4th place) in the CCPI Index 2025. How many of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) Only one (b) Only two (c) All three (d) None (Sources: Climate Change Performance Index: Top and bottom 10 countries in 2025, Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – Indian Express UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X. 🚨 Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for May 2025. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at Roshni Yadav is a Deputy Copy Editor with The Indian Express. She is an alumna of the University of Delhi and Jawaharlal Nehru University, where she pursued her graduation and post-graduation in Political Science. She has over five years of work experience in ed-tech and media. At The Indian Express, she writes for the UPSC section. Her interests lie in national and international affairs, governance, economy, and social issues. You can contact her via email: ... Read More
Indian Express
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Climate Change Performance Index: Top and bottom 10 countries in 2025 — where does India rank?
Climate Change Performance Index 2025: Climate change is real! Despite being the central topic of debate for decades, climate change continues to accelerate, global temperature continues to inch towards 'tipping points', and greenhouse gas concentrations rise at unprecedented levels. Out of 64 countries responsible for over 90% of global GHG emissions, only 22 are making progress in the Climate Change Performance Index 2025, while 42 are falling behind. This year, the top three positions remain vacant, with no single country ranking 'very high' on all parameters for climate change mitigation in 2025. Denmark has retained its rank as the top country (#4) in the CCPI Index 2025, earning a very high rating in the renewable energy category, a high rating in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate policy, and a medium rating in energy use. Notably, G20 countries account for over 75% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, with 14 of their countries receiving a low or very low CCPI score; however, India and the United Kingdom are two G20 countries on track with low GHG emissions per capita. Contrastingly, countries like China, the United States of America (USA), Canada, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and more have been ranked very low. Source: Climate Change Performance Index 2025 Note: None of the countries earned positions one through three. No country is doing enough to mitigate hazardous climate change. Slipping down to two positions, India ranks tenth in the 2025 CCPI, remaining among the top achievers. India ranks high in the GHG emissions and energy use categories, medium in climate policy, and low in renewable energy. India has made significant progress in renewable energy policy, particularly through large-scale solar power plants and the implementation of the Rooftop Solar Scheme. Despite these encouraging achievements, India remains largely dependent on coal, and experts believe its phase-out is moving too slowly. Source: Climate Change Performance Index 2025 Cherry Gupta is an Assistant Manager - Content at The Indian Express. She is responsible for crafting compelling narratives, uncovering the latest news and developments, and driving engaging content based on data and trends to boost website traffic and audience engagement. One can connect with her on LinkedIn or by mail at ... Read More
