Earth Today | Paris in peril?
Small islands want developed countries to deliver on promises from historic climate agreement
Published:Thursday | June 12, 2025 | 12:06 AM
AS THE 10th anniversary of the historic Paris Agreement nears, small island states are urging developed countries to demonstrate a greater commitment to reducing greenhouse emissions that fuel the warming of the planet and trigger associated risks, including extreme hurricanes and droughts.
“Our islands are under severe strain as we cope with the devastating costs to our people, our economies, our cultures, our lands, and seas due to rising temperatures and more brutal storms,” noted Ambassador Ilana Seid, chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), in a news release shared on June 5, World Environment Day.
“Sea level rise is evident, and our warming waters are becoming increasingly uninhabitable leading to biodiversity loss. Islands are the custodians of our world’s oceans and precious maritime resources, yet we are being left behind. We are urging countries to display real courage so we can turn the tide and deliver on the faith our citizens placed in us when we all came together to commit to the Paris Agreement,” she added.
The Paris Agreement sets out country commitments to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change, in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty.
This includes the commitment to “holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, recognising that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change”.
Yet, many countries appear tepid in their response to the need to cut emissions, with nationally determined countries (NDCs) – which reflect those commitments and the pathways there – so far delivering on less than is required to turn the corner on the warming of the planet.
“As the world begins to reflect on the progress of the landmark [Paris]agreement, it is clear that while important progress is being made, global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise and NDCs remain lacking. Action is insufficient and 1.5 degrees Celsius-aligned pathways are rapidly narrowing,” the AOSIS release noted.
It is against this background, it said, that at the 62nd Meeting of the Subsidiary Bodies of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bonn, Germany from June 16, climate negotiators representing the Pacific, Caribbean, African, Indian and South China Seas islands will “strive to secure robust outcomes that can keep the Paris Agreement’s central goal alive”.
In particular, AOSIS – which has represented the interests of the 39 small island and low-lying coastal developing states in international climate change and sustainable development negotiations since 1990 – will advocate for countries to amplify their ambition with their NDCs submission almost now due.
“These plans are key to implementing climate action and ensuring we avoid the most catastrophic climate change impacts,” said Ambassador Seid.
“We need inspiring ambition and alignment with the latest science. For small island developing states, the NDCs submitted this year will be the barometer for the international community’s actual intention to safeguard a liveable future for all. We must fulfil the aims of the Paris Agreement and prove to our people that their faith in us is not misplaced,” she added.