Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR) — Question 10

A technology company expands its sustainable offerings and develops a flight booking application that allows customers to offset a flight’s carbon emissions. An analyst at the company researches climate agreements to inform the structure of the offsetting program.
How does the analyst describe the achievements and shortcomings of the agreements?

Answer options

• A. A shortcoming of COP21 (Paris) is that countries are legally obligated to annually submit nationally determined contributions (NDCs), and most have kept NDCs at unchanged levels.
• B. COP3 (Kyoto) resulted in differentiated national responsibilities wherein developing countries were not subject to emissions reduction obligations, which disincentivized Annex 1 countries to take action.
• C. The main achievement of COP15 (Copenhagen) was the creation of the IPCC, an influential scientific body that became the leading body in guiding subsequent climate agreements.
• D. Although COP1 (Berlin) ended with no binding treaty, it was the first COP to establish a goal that global warming remains below 2°C.

Correct answer: B

Explanation

The correct answer is B because it highlights how the structure of COP3 (Kyoto) led to a lack of commitment from Annex 1 countries due to the exemptions for developing nations. Option A incorrectly states that countries are legally obligated to keep NDCs unchanged, which is not entirely accurate. Option C misattributes the creation of the IPCC to COP15, while it was established earlier. Option D recognizes a goal set at COP1, but it does not address the failures in the context of national responsibilities.