Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement: Transition from Bindings to Pledges – A Review

Abstract

The present thematic review assessed 47 articles on the world’s global climate management policy. It reviews the Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement aiming to mitigate climate change with the mechanisms of bindings and pledges, respectively. The research on Kyoto Protocol suggests that most Annex I parties have met their targets through its embedded mechanisms. However, global emissions continued to increase even in the protocol period owing to many defects in its inherent mechanism. Further, the review of the Paris Agreement reveals that most of its signatories are striving hard to achieve the targets. Despite that, the global emissions trends have been very alarming and predicted emissions could be far above the Paris Agreement’s limit. The review reveals that the Kyoto Protocol successfully paved the way for a new climate management order. At the same time, the success of the Paris Agreement relies mainly on communication and compliance of respective Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by signatories, alignments of NDCs and Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), and transparency in their emission mitigation targets. The study opined that the developed nations should help developing nations meet their pledges, transfer first-hand technology and provide adequate innovative technological solutions with financial provisions for making a carbon-neutral sustainable planet.