Kyoto Protocol
GHG emission targets
The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty aimed at addressing climate change. It was adopted in Kyoto, Japan in 1997 as a part of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The main objective of the protocol is to require developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in order to prevent further global warming and climate change.
Under the Kyoto Protocol, developed countries (known as Annex I countries) agreed to reduce their collective greenhouse gas emissions to a level that was 5.2% below their 1990 levels. This was to be achieved by 2012, the end of the protocol’s first commitment period. The protocol also established a number of mechanisms to assist countries in meeting their commitments, such as emissions trading and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).
The Kyoto Protocol has been seen as a landmark agreement in the international efforts to combat climate change. However, its effectiveness has been debated due to the limited number of countries that have ratified it and the lack of binding obligations for developing countries to reduce their emissions. The United States, one of the largest greenhouse gas emitters in the world, did not ratify the protocol, which further limited its impact.
Despite its limitations, the Kyoto Protocol paved the way for further international climate agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, which was adopted in 2015. The Paris Agreement builds on the achievements of the Kyoto Protocol and aims to strengthen the international response to climate change by keeping global warming below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C.
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