Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development

September 21, 2022

US Senate Votes to Ratify Kigali Amendment to Phase Down Super Polluting HFCs

In a major victory for the planet, the US Senate voted to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol to phase down super climate pollutants called hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), used primarily as refrigerants in air conditioners and other cooling equipment. The Kigali Amendment needed the approval of a two-thirds super-majority of the chamber. It is the first climate treaty to clear the Senate in decades.

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June 17, 2022

The US – EU Announce Critical Implementation of the Global Methane Pledge for Oil & Gas

At the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF) hosted by President Biden the United States, the European Union, and 11 countries announced the Global Methane Pledge Energy Pathway to catalyze methane emissions reductions in the oil and gas sector, advancing both climate progress and energy security.

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May 23, 2022

Time to Broaden Strategy to Avert Catastrophic Climate Change

Slashing emissions of carbon dioxide, by itself, cannot prevent catastrophic global warming. But a new study concludes that a strategy that simultaneously reduces emissions of other largely neglected climate pollutants would cut the rate of global warming in half and give the world a fighting chance to keep the climate safe for humanity.

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April 4, 2022

IPCC AR6 WGIII Mitigation of Climate Change Reaffirms Central Role of Methane Mitigation to Keep the Climate Safe

The report reaffirms the only mitigation pathways that keep 1.5°C warming within reach with limited overshoot require cutting methane by at least 30 percent by the end of this decade. This is the goal of the Global Methane Pledge launched by the US and the EU last November at COP26 and already endorsed by over 111 countries.

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September 17, 2021

U.S.- EU Launch Pledge to Cut Super Climate Pollutant Methane

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.

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September 15, 2021

Statement on the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer

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.

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May 6, 2021

Cutting Methane Key to Keeping Earth From Warming Itself Beyond Human Control

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.

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April 22, 2021

World leaders to US: “Welcome back to the fight. This time I know our side will win”

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.

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April 16, 2021

China to Accept Kigali Amendment on HFCs and Strengthen Action on Other Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases

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.

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January 27, 2021

President Biden to Submit Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol for Senate Ratification

President Biden directed the State Dept. to prepare a transmittal package to the Senate for the ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol to phase down potent HFCs. “President Biden knows the Senate better than any president before him, and will be using the advice and consent process to build bipartisan support for this and future climate action, which the American people are demanding,” said IGSD President, Durwood Zaelke.

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January 8, 2021

Pandemic Relief Bill Mandates HFC Phasedown in Compliance with Montreal Protocol’s Kigali Amendment

In a huge win for the environment and American businesses, the Consolidated Appropriations Act that was signed into law on 27 December 2020 phases down potent greenhouse gases HFCs. Reducing HFC refrigerants could avoid up to 0.5°C of future warming. Climate benefits could double with parallel improvements in energy efficiency of cooling equipment.

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July 17, 2020

Climate-friendly Cooling Could Cut Years of GHG Emissions, Buy Time and Save US$ Trillions: UNEP & IEA

Coordinated international action on energy-efficient, climate-friendly cooling could avoid as much as 460 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions – roughly equal to eight years of global emissions at 2018 levels – over the next four decades.

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IGSD works to promote just and sustainable societies and to protect the environment by advancing the understanding, development, and implementation of effective, and accountable systems of governance for sustainable development.

News

17 Jan

China Announces Progress in Methane Monitoring and Evaluation In Preparation for the Release of Its National Action Plan on Methane

During its January 2023 press conference, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) highlighted progress on carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas monitoring and evaluation pilot projects aimed at answering critical questions on “what to measure,” “where to measure,” and “how to measure.”
19 Dec 22

Protecting the Ozone Layer, 35th Anniversary Book – Available for Purchase

On 31 October 2022, at the 34th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol in Montreal, the United Nations Environment Program Ozone Secretariat and the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development (IGSD) launched the celebratory Montreal Protocol 35th Anniversary Book Protecting the Ozone Layer. The electronic version (Kindle Edition) of the book has now become available for purchase on Amazon.
31 Oct 22

COP27 Climate Summit: IGSD experts available to comment

Climate emissions are accelerating and the 1.5°C guardrail for keeping the climate relatively safe could be crossed within a decade or less. At COP27 governments must commit to speed and scale up climate action to avoid the most warming in the shortest period of time and to protect the most vulnerable people and ecosystems. Their action this November will decide the fate of billions of people, for years to come. IGSD experts are available to comment.
20 Oct 22

New Report: Curbing 90 Billion Tons of Super-Pollutant Emissions

Minimizing refrigerant leaks and maximizing end-of-life recovery and reclamation can avoid fluorocarbon emissions equivalent to 90 billion metric tons of CO2 this century and help avoid climate catastrophe, according to a new report released today by IGSD,, the EIA, and NRDC. The report, The 90 Billion Ton Opportunity: Lifecycle Refrigerant Management, lays out this significant opportunity for federal and state policymakers, major corporations, and equipment owners and operators.