UNEP works to facilitate the transition to low-carbon societies, support climate proofing efforts, improve understanding of climate change science, and raise public awareness about this global challenge.

UNEP’s diverse and rich history with climate change dates from the late 1980s, when UNEP helped establish the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and conducted assessments of the scientific understanding of climate change in preparation for the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The first IPCC Assessment was presented in 1990, with three subsequent assessments documenting advances in the understanding of the science of climate change, its impacts, and the options for addressing the issue.

UNEP also supported the negotiation of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that was opened for signature by governments at UNCED and entered into force in 1994. Moving beyond support for science and legal mechanisms, UNEP in 1998 created an Energy Branch in DTIE to facilitate the adoption of clean energy technologies and techniques, stepped up its activities on monitoring and assessment, and began supporting adaptation work in developing countries as an implementing agency of the GEF.

Today, a variety of projects and initiatives spanning all UNEP Divisions address the effects of climate change on communities and ecosystems, help governments and the private sector reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, and meet national and regional requests regarding specific responses to climate change.

Indeed, some quite simple ‘no regrets’ measures can more than halve the daily emissions of an individual, with even bigger cuts possible if sectors like power suppliers and automobile makers as well as aviation and appliance manufacturers contributed more to the greening of global lifestyles.