Press Releases

The United States and the European Union launched a global pledge to reduce methane emissions by nearly a third by 2030, as part of a broader effort to increase ambition to address the climate crisis. The launch was announced at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate hosted today by President Biden. This is the first time heads of State have pledged fast action to cut super climate pollutants to meet the 1.5°C temperature target of the Paris Agreement.

The Future of Life Institute today announced that IGSD’s Director of Research Dr. Stephen O. Andersen has been selected for the Future of Life Award, alongside Dr. Susan Solomon and late Joseph Farman, for their dedicated efforts to protect the stratospheric ozone layer. Their efforts are recognized for helping make the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, signed in 1987, the most successful international treaty in history. 

As the world enters a crucial phase in the battle to combat climate change, International Ozone Day reminds us that the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is not only saving the stratospheric ozone layer and keeping us safe from harmful ultraviolet radiation but is also doing more than any other agreement to slow catastrophic global warming. As we celebrate the achievements of this planet-saving treaty, we also need to realize how much remains to be done.

Aggressively cutting methane emissions is the fastest and most effective way to reduce the rate of warming and keep the global average temperature from breaching the 1.5°C barrier above preindustrial levels, according to the Global Methane Assessment released today by UNEP and the CCAC. The Assessment calculates that available mitigation measures can cut emissions from human activities by 45 percent and avoid nearly 0.3 °C of warming by the 2040s.

The United States EPA took an important step for climate protection today by finalizing Significant New Alternatives Policy program rule 23 (SNAP 23). This rule approves several low global warming potential refrigerants for split system air conditioners and heat pumps, including R-32.

Most world leaders who spoke this morning at President Joe Biden’s Leaders’ Summit welcomed the U.S. back to the climate fight. Many world leaders echoed President Biden’s science goal of limiting warming to 1.5 °C, and many shared the president’s focus on the decade of action to 2030.

At the conclusion of their 17 April 2021 bilateral meeting,  U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and China Special Envoy for Climate Change Xie Zhenhua pledged near-term actions to address the climate crisis. Countries pledge to strengthen Paris Agreement, implement the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, and reduce emissions under other sectoral agreements.

In a virtual summit with President Macron of France and Chancellor Merkel of Germany, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced China will accept the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. President Xi also mentioned China’s intention to strengthen the control of non-CO2 greenhouse gases.