New data from the World Meteorological Organisation has revealed that carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere jumped by a record amount in 2024 to touch a new high. Ten years of the Paris Agreement have not brought any significant slowdown in the global greenhouse gas emissions trajectory. Global CO2 emissions have actually increased from about 39.6 billion tonnes to about 41.6 billion tonnes during this time. Under Donald Trump, the US has pulled out of the Paris Agreement once again, while developing countries are increasingly disillusioned with this process. Next month’s COP30 meeting in Belem, Brazil, is being held at a time when interest and enthusiasm in this annual climate conference are at a low level.

The meeting is unlikely to deliver an outcome that can address the urge

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