Lima Call for Climate Action

Lima Call for Climate Action
Name	Lima Call for Climate Action
Adopted	2014-12-13
Location	Lima, Peru
Convening body	United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Meeting	United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP20)
Preceded by	Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol
Succeeded by	Paris Agreement
Language	English, Spanish

Contents

Lima Call for Climate Action

The Lima Call for Climate Action was the outcome document of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP20) held in Lima, Peru in December 2014, produced under the auspices of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change secretariat. It set procedural and substantive steps toward the universal climate agreement later adopted in Paris, France at COP21 and provided guidance to Parties such as United States, China, India, Brazil, and European Union members on preparing intended nationally determined contributions ahead of 2015. The decision emerged amid negotiations involving actors including the Alliance of Small Island States, Least Developed Countries Group, Umbrella Group, and the G77 and China coalition.

Background

Negotiations preceding the Lima outcome were shaped by prior instruments and gatherings, notably the Kyoto Protocol, the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, and the negotiating tracks from COPs such as COP19 in Warsaw and intersessional meetings in Bonn. Diplomatic interactions involved envoys from United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, Australia, and delegations from the African Group and Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Scientific and technical inputs were provided by bodies including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and research institutions like NASA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Civil society presence comprised organizations such as Greenpeace, World Wildlife Fund, 350.org, and trade union federations, while business representation included actors like the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and major emitters' industry groups.

The Lima Call for Climate Action was negotiated during the United Nations Climate Change Conference hosted by the Peruvian Ministry of Environment and mediated by the COP20 President, Manuel Pulgar-Vidal. Delegates from Parties including China, United States, India, Russia, and Brazil debated text elements in contact groups and plenaries, alongside representatives from the European Commission and subnational actors such as the Governors' Climate and Forests Task Force. The final adoption occurred after intensive bilateral consultations involving envoys from the G77 and China, the African Group, the Alliance of Small Island States, and the Least Developed Countries Group, with facilitation by the UNFCCC secretariat and legal drafting support from delegations such as New Zealand and Norway.

The decision requested Parties to prepare and communicate intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) to mitigation, adaptation, finance, technology transfer, and capacity-building, with guidance on content and timetable to inform the Paris Agreement negotiations involving Parties like Japan, South Korea, Mexico, South Africa, and the European Union. It emphasized enhanced transparency frameworks drawing upon reporting formats used by the International Maritime Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization for sectoral inputs, and encouraged submission of finance pledges referencing mechanisms like the Green Climate Fund and institutions including the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. The document reiterated commitments to consider safeguards related to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, while urging collaboration with research networks such as the Global Carbon Project and policy forums like the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate.

Negotiations featured state Parties, observer organizations, and non-state actors including city networks like C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, philanthropic foundations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and corporate alliances like the We Mean Business Coalition. Regional negotiating blocs—European Union, African Group, AOSIS (the Alliance of Small Island States), and LAM members—shaped positions; influential national delegations included representatives from China, United States, India, Brazil, Russia, Japan, Canada, and Australia. Technical experts from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, finance officials from the International Monetary Fund, and legal advisers from national ministries participated in drafting; environmental NGOs such as Friends of the Earth and Sierra Club campaigned for stronger provisions, while industry groups including the International Emissions Trading Association lobbied on market mechanisms.

The Lima decision established a timetable and modalities for submission, review, and synthesis of INDCs, assigning roles to the UNFCCC secretariat, the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice, and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation. It called for technical expert review processes and for the secretariat to prepare a synthesis report to inform COP21 deliberations in Paris, France, with potential engagement from multilateral development banks such as the European Investment Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank. The decision encouraged capacity-building partnerships with institutions like the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Environment Programme, and referenced mechanisms for monitoring, reporting, and verification comparable to modalities under the Kyoto Protocol while seeking to integrate lessons from the Nairobi Work Programme.

Reactions to the Lima Call for Climate Action varied: some Parties including the European Union and AOSIS regarded it as a necessary procedural step toward a universal agreement, whereas delegates from G77 and China emphasized equity and finance considerations, with scrutiny from NGOs such as Oxfam and World Resources Institute. Analysts at think tanks like the International Institute for Environment and Development and Climate Analytics assessed its role in catalyzing the INDC process that underpinned the subsequent adoption of the Paris Agreement by Parties at COP21. Private sector responses included commitments from multinational firms coordinated through the We Mean Business Coalition and financial pledges aligned with the Green Climate Fund; scholars from universities including Harvard University, Oxford University, and Stanford University examined its implications for global mitigation trajectories and adaptation finance pathways.