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Entity reports on the Paris Agreement and how it affects climate change.

Environmentalists can finally rejoice – history was made in December 2015 when more than 200 countries accepted a climate change agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.

According to the LA Times, there were some issues with whether developing countries should also strive to implement changes since developed countries are the main producers of increased greenhouse gases. Because developed nations took in a lot of business and money from “coal, oil, and other fossil fuels” that came from developing countries, industrialized nations should “help poor nations cope with the effects of climate change.”

Before the successful Paris Agreement, Pope Francis had been very open about climate change, calling it a social justice issue because of its disproportionate effect on Third World countries. The LA Times reports that a year before the Paris talks, China and the U.S. issued a “bilateral agreement to reduce greenhouse gases.” At the same time, a study by the Pew Research Center showed that only 45 percent of the U.S. and 18 percent of China viewed climate change as a problem.

But what, exactly, did they agree on at the conference? Here are some of the goals.

1 TEMPERATURE GOAL

They set a two degrees Celsius temperature goal that would help avoid the “worst effects of global warming.” In fact, some nations are even striving for a change of 1.5 degrees.

2 INDIVIDUAL PHASING OUT

How will they do it? Countries are individually phasing out “the use of fossil fuels and [reducing] greenhouse gas emissions.” By having each country do it individually, however, it could keep the temperatures closer to three degrees.

3 REVIEW PROGRESS IN 2020

Starting in 2020, the conference is set to review the progress and commitments of countries regularly.

4 WEALTHY COUNTRIES SPEND $100 BILLION

Wealthy countries plan to spend “no less than $100 billion per year by 2020 to help developing nations” and by 2025, that number will increase.

The main problem with the agreement? The goals and pledges of these countries are not binding under international law. At the conference, President Obama spoke about how the agreement “was not perfect” but was essential for future generations.

Edited by Ellena Kilgallon
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