UNFCCCstä

The UNFCCC is the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. It is an international treaty that provides an overall framework for intergovernmental efforts to tackle the problem of climate change. Adopted at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, it entered into force in 1994. The UNFCCC aims to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. It does not set binding emission reduction targets. Instead, it establishes a framework for setting future targets and for the development of policies and actions to achieve them. The Convention's ultimate objective is to achieve the "stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere."

The UNFCCC secretariat, based in Bonn, Germany, supports the work of the Convention's bodies. These include the Conference of the Parties (COP), which is the supreme decision-making body, and the Subsidiary Bodies for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and Implementation (SBI). The COP meets annually to review the Convention's progress and take decisions to promote its effective implementation. The UNFCCC has been instrumental in establishing subsequent agreements, most notably the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement, which set more specific goals and mechanisms for climate action. The Convention provides a foundation for international cooperation on climate change, encouraging countries to develop national strategies, share information, and engage in capacity-building.