How the Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goals, and Sendai Framework are creating an architecture for planetary stewardship
Imagine our Earth as a small child with a fever—just one degree Celsius above normal can endanger the entire system. Today, that child is running a temperature. In 2015, global warming reached 1°C above preindustrial levels for the first time in recorded history, and the fever is rising1 . From devastating wildfires consuming entire communities to rising seas swallowing island nations, climate change has cemented its status as the defining crisis of our time—one that recognizes no borders and threatens every nation, rich and poor alike.
The very nature of climate change makes it a problem that no single country can solve alone. Greenhouse gases emitted anywhere contribute to the problem everywhere. This reality has forced nations to move beyond isolated environmental policies toward an unprecedented era of international climate diplomacy. In this article, we'll explore how the world is responding to this collective threat through groundbreaking frameworks and scientific collaborations that represent our best hope for planetary stewardship.
The year 2015 marked a historic turning point in international climate diplomacy with three complementary frameworks
Adopted in December 2015, the Paris Agreement represents a watershed moment in climate diplomacy. For the first time, nearly every nation on Earth—currently 195 parties—agreed to binding targets aimed at limiting global temperature increases to "well below 2°C" while "pursuing efforts" to stay within 1.5°C above preindustrial levels1 .
The agreement operates on a five-year cycle of increasingly ambitious climate actions, with countries submitting national plans known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
With its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this global framework recognizes that "development cannot be achieved without peace—and without sustainable development, peace will be fragile"1 . It acknowledges the interconnections between economic, social, and environmental dimensions of development.
The SDGs provide a comprehensive roadmap for countries to balance human development with environmental sustainability, addressing issues from poverty and hunger to climate action and life below water.
Adopted in March 2015, this framework emphasizes managing risks rather than disasters1 . It recognizes that deteriorating living conditions after disasters provide fertile ground for political instability, making preparedness essential for maintaining stability.
The Sendai Framework focuses on understanding disaster risk, strengthening disaster risk governance, investing in resilience, and enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response.
These three frameworks, while emerging from different political processes, create what climate experts call the beginning of a more orderly global architecture for sustainable development and resilience1 . Their effectiveness ultimately depends on implementation by national governments, civil society, businesses, and citizens worldwide.
Latest data reveals that multiple climate indicators are worsening faster than previously projected
| Indicator | Historical Rate | Current Rate | Acceleration Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global Surface Temperature | 0.2°C per decade (1990s-2000s) | 0.27°C per decade (2015-2024) | Nearly 50% faster warming3 |
| Sea Level Rise | 1.85 mm per year (1900-2000 average) | 4.5 mm per year (2014-2024) | More than doubling of rate3 |
| Ice Sheet Loss (Greenland) | - | 279 billion tons per year (1993-2019 average) | Accelerating melt8 |
| Arctic Sea Ice | - | Declining rapidly in extent and thickness | Feedback loops increasing8 |
Perhaps most concerning is what scientists call Earth's energy imbalance—the difference between incoming solar energy and outgoing heat. This imbalance has more than doubled since the 1980s3 , meaning our planet is trapping heat at an unprecedented rate.
Rigorous application of the scientific method provides multiple lines of evidence for human-caused climate change
When scientists like Josh Willis, principal investigator of NASA's Oceans Melting Greenland (OMG) mission, seek to understand ice melt, they follow a systematic process5 :
OMG hypothesized that oceans play a major role in Greenland ice loss
Over five years, the mission collected ocean temperature, salinity, and sea floor depth data
Scientists discovered many Greenland glaciers extend deeper than thought—some around 1,000 feet—making them vulnerable to warming waters
West Greenland's glaciers were found to be more vulnerable than those in the east
Findings undergo peer review before publication, contributing to our growing understanding
"This iterative process, repeated across thousands of studies, has built what NASA calls 'the weight of all of this information taken together points to the single consistent fact that humans and our activity are warming the planet'"5 .
Extracts historical atmospheric gas concentrations and temperature data from glacial ice, providing records up to 800,000 years4 .
Studies annual growth patterns to infer past climate conditions, with records extending up to 11,000 years4 .
Monitors current climate system changes (ice loss, sea level rise, temperature) with continuous monitoring since 1970s8 .
Collects lake and ocean sediment cores containing fossil and chemical climate proxies, with records up to 200 million years4 .
A novel approach to simulating future climate scenarios with unprecedented control over environmental variables
| Step | Process | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Model Selection | Identify best-performing regional climate model from EURO-CORDEX ensemble | Ensures realistic representation of regional climate features |
| 2. Climate Projection | Extract 3-hourly climate data for specific global warming levels (e.g., +1.5°C, +2°C) | Preserves natural climate variability and extreme events |
| 3. Unit Assignment | Assign different ecotron units to different global mean temperature anomalies | Creates a warming gradient to study ecosystem responses |
| 4. Ecosystem Monitoring | Track responses of soil monoliths from heathland ecosystems | Reveals thresholds and tipping points in natural systems |
This approach represents a quantum leap in climate experimentation because it preserves what scientists call "compound events"—situations where combinations of climate factors lead to extreme impacts.
The Ecotron experiment allows scientists to detect non-linearities, thresholds, and potential tipping points—critical information for policymakers.
Complementary methodologies that together build an incontrovertible case for human-caused climate change
| Research Method | Function | Time Scale Covered |
|---|---|---|
| Ice Core Sampling | Extracts historical atmospheric gas concentrations and temperature data from glacial ice | Up to 800,000 years4 |
| Tree Ring Analysis (Dendroclimatology) | Studies annual growth patterns to infer past climate conditions | Up to 11,000 years4 |
| Sediment Drilling | Collects lake and ocean sediment cores containing fossil and chemical climate proxies | Up to 200 million years4 |
| Satellite Observation | Monitors current climate system changes (ice loss, sea level rise, temperature) | Continuous monitoring since 1970s8 |
| Climate Models | Simulates past, present, and future climate based on physical principles | Projections through 2100 |
Together, these tools form a convergent line of evidence that leaves no reasonable doubt about human influence on the climate system. As the IPCC states, "the influence of human activity on the warming of the climate system has evolved from theory to established fact"8 .
Accelerating changes and closing windows for action versus glimmers of hope through collective action
This is where the global frameworks of the Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goals, and Sendai Framework prove essential—they provide the structure for coordinated international action. Climate diplomacy, once focused primarily on negotiating agreements, must now evolve to implement them and address climate security risks1 .
As individuals, we might feel that our actions are insignificant against a challenge of this magnitude. Yet it is precisely through the accumulation of individual choices—what we consume, how we travel, who we elect—that the broader societal changes needed to address climate change will emerge.
What we do in this critical decade will echo for generations to come.