Global Climate Change Initiative and Donald Trump

President Donald Trump is again withdrawing the United States from the Paris Agreement, a 2015 international climate accord aimed at limiting global warming and mitigating climate change impacts. This agreement resulted from extensive efforts by the United Nations and its agencies, which focus on maintaining peace, protecting natural resources in developing nations, and promoting environmental conservation. In 1968, the UN Economic and Social Council endorsed a conference agenda on humans and the environment, leading to the first Earth Summit in Stockholm in 1972.

This summit established the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) to raise awareness of environmental issues, foster international cooperation and develop sustainable policies. UNEP has since provided nations with guidance on environmental strategies and practices, facilitating collaboration and promoting best practices.

The first climate summit recognised the issue of climate change, suggesting the establishment of monitoring stations and coordination of projects with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The second environmental conference, held in Nairobi, focused on various topics such as water resources, marine life, renewable energy, desertification, forests, ecological systems, and environmental laws and regulations.

In 1988, global warming and the depletion of the ozone layer emerged as political issues and subjects of public debate. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established that same year by the UNEP and WMO to monitor greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.

The Montreal Protocol, signed in 1989, introduced precautionary measures to address harmful substances affecting the ozone layer. The Second World Climate Conference in Geneva in 1990 raised awareness about the consequences of climate change, while the multilateral Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 called for coordinated global action to combat climate change. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was signed by 158 countries, emphasising the need to control human-made greenhouse gas emissions.

The Kyoto Protocol committed industrialised nations to reduce their total greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide, by at least 5% from 1990 levels by 2012. The widely discussed Paris Agreement on climate change was adopted on 12 December 2015, during the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) held in Paris, France. The Agreement aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, with efforts to restrict the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. It officially entered into force on 4 November 2016.

Trump contended that the Paris Agreement placed unfair burdens on the U.S. economy, leading to the withdrawal of the U.S. during his first term. The country officially re-joined Paris Agreement under President Joe Biden in 2021. On 20 January 2025, Trump signed an order to exit the “unfair, one-sided Paris climate accord”. While the U.S. has seen a decrease in emissions since the mid-2000s, it remains the largest historical contributor to carbon dioxide emissions. Trump’s decision to exit the agreement was anticipated, as his campaign had indicated such action months earlier.

Environmental groups strongly criticised the move, with Rachel Cleetus of the Union of Concerned Scientists and Laurence Tubiana of the European Climate Foundation asserting that international climate action has proven more resilient than any single nation’s politics.

Climate change is a global issue that leads to rising temperatures, melting ice caps, extreme weather events and increased sea levels. The IPCC warns that without significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, global warming could surpass 2°C above pre-industrial levels. This would result in catastrophic environmental and socio-economic consequences, disproportionately affecting vulnerable communities, particularly in developing countries.

During Donald Trump’s first term as president, his administration adopted a controversial stance on climate change, often criticised for undermining global efforts to address the crisis. Key aspects of Trump’s climate policy included withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, rolling back environmental regulations, promoting fossil fuels and denying the reality of climate change. This rhetoric eroded public trust in climate science and delayed essential actions.

Bangladesh, a nation particularly vulnerable to climate change, faces severe challenges such as rising sea levels, frequent cyclones and floods, salinity intrusion, impacts on agriculture, health issues, and climate-induced displacement. Despite these challenges, vulnerable countries have not made significant contributions to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in recent years.

If the U.S. had not withdrawn from the Paris Agreement during Trump’s first term, could the situation have been different? While President Biden has returned to the Agreement, progress has been slow. This raises a pressing dilemma in our fight against climate change. However, we can no longer wait to assess the influence of any of the powerful countries and must move forward with our initiatives.

The writer is a Senior Consultant of IFAD, former Director General of BRRI and former Executive Director of KGF