Building a low-carbon, climate resilient future: climate action in support of the Paris Agreement

Call summary and aims

The COP21 Paris Agreement[[http://unfccc.int/paris_agreement/items/9485.php]] (PA) marked the beginning of a new era in the fight against climate change. Governments agreed to limit global temperature rise to well below 2°C and to make efforts to limit this to 1.5°C, as well as to enhance adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience and reducing vulnerabilities. This call contributes in its entirety to the Focus Area "Building a low-carbon climate-resilient future", which brings together funding to support the goals of the PA.

Actions in this call aim to produce solutions for the achievement of the PA's mitigation and adaptation goals, and to further relevant scientific knowledge for the implementation of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and in advance of key PA-related milestones, such as the publication of national mid-century strategies (2020), the 6th IPCC assessment cycle (2018-2022) and the first global stocktake in 2023. Actions also support relevant EU policies and objectives, such as the Energy Union, Arctic policy, EU Adaptation Strategy and EU climate diplomacy efforts. Special consideration will be given to cooperation with strategic partner countries/regions. Specific efforts have to be paid to communicating research results to a broader audience, including the larger public. Ultimately, the actions are expected to support Europe's endeavours to implement not only the PA but also the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 13 'Climate action', SDG 6 'Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all', SDG 11 'Sustainable cities and communities', SDG 14 'Life below water' and SDG 15 'Life on land'.