Climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our day: temperatures are rising, droughts and wildfires are becoming more common, rainfall patterns are shifting, glaciers and snow are melting, and the global mean sea level is rising. To combat climate change, we must reduce or eliminate emissions caused by human activity.
According to a joint statement issued at the BRICS High-level Meeting on Climate Change in 2022, China has been implementing proactive national strategies on addressing climate change.
Based on exceeding the international community's 2020 climate action goal, China has announced the goal and vision of achieving carbon neutrality before 2060 and peaking carbon dioxide emissions before 2030, and has scaled up its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) through a series of new measures.
China has communicated an updated NDC and Long-Term Low Greenhouse Gas Emission Development Strategy, established the Leading Group on Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality, completed the top-level design on carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, and essentially established the "1+N" policy framework for carbon peaking and carbon neutrality. It has also proposed the Global Development Initiative to expedite the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with climate change and green development among its eight key areas of collaboration.
Brazil is dedicated to mitigating the negative effects of climate change, according to the statement. It boosted its mitigation ambition at COP26 by setting a new target of lowering greenhouse gas emissions by half by 2030, based on 2005 levels. Brazil outlined strategic actions for a 2050 climate neutrality objective, including zero illegal deforestation by 2028, restoring and reforesting 18 million hectares of forest by 2030, and stimulating national rail network expansion. Brazil also joined the Global Methane Pact and, more recently, announced the development of the National Program for Methane Emissions Reduction - Zero Methane, which will be responsible for producing economic resources in the country by reducing methane emissions.
The statement said that the Russian Federation adheres steadfastly to the principles of the Convention and the Paris Agreement, relentlessly pursuing their objectives. Russia has stated that it will attain carbon neutrality by 2060. Russia is undergoing a major restructuring of its manufacturing and energy sectors, with low-emission energy sources, including nuclear power generation, already accounting for 45 percent of Russia's energy balance.
India is dedicated to taking substantial climate action, such as promoting sustainable lifestyles based on thoughtful consumption and waste reduction, according to the statement. India's forest and tree cover is gradually rising, accounting for 24.62 percent of its geographic area. In the previous three years, India has added 23 wetlands as Ramsar sites, giving it the largest network of Ramsar sites in South Asia. This highlights India's tremendous efforts to strengthen ecosystem-based methods to climate change mitigation.
South Africa is making progress toward its climate objectives, the statement noted. It has created a Presidential Climate Commission, enacted a National Adaptation Strategy, implemented an upgraded Mitigation system with thorough monitoring and evaluation, and created a long-term Low Emissions Development Strategy. South Africa's amended and much more ambitious NDC, submitted ahead of COP26, moves the country's emissions peak by a decade. South Africa's 2030 modified target emission range is consistent with a 1.5-degree pathway, while the higher end of the range is consistent with a 2-degree pathway, in accordance with the language and spirit of the Paris Agreement.
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