The emissions gap report 2012: a UNEP synthesis report

One of the fundamental questions in the global climate negotiations is: what level of “ambition”, in terms of collective emission reductions, is needed to protect global climate? To help answer this question UNEP and the scientific community have published a series of reports on the “emissions gap1 ” since 2010. Of particular interest to the ambition question is the gap in 2020 between emission levels consistent with the 2o C climate target and emissions levels projected if country reduction pledges are fulfilled. If there is a gap, then there is doubt that the ambition of countries is great enough to meet the agreed-upon 2o C climate target