1. Introduction

The need for rapid and deep reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) in order to limit average temperature rises to within the limits set out by the Paris Agreement is clear (IPCC, 2021[1]). One of the outcomes of the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP) was the Glasgow Climate Pact (GCP), (UNFCCC, 2021[2]), which i.a. decided to establish “a work programme to urgently scale up mitigation ambition and implementation in this critical decade”. Ensuring that this mitigation work programme (MWP) is “fit for purpose” is a crucial challenge. Successfully meeting this challenge will need to involve many different actors, and occur in many different sectors and countries.

The objectives, modalities, governance and outputs of the MWP were agreed in 2022 at the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA) (UNFCCC, 2022[3]). The MWP will be guided by two co-chairs, and will include a variety of different events and outputs. These events include i.a. at least two global dialogues to be held every year between 2023-2026.1 These global dialogues are to “facilitate a focused exchange of views, information and ideas” on selected topics (UNFCCC, 2022[3]), which will be summarised in a report. This report will be presented to the annual highlevel ministerial round table (MRT) (UNFCCC, 2021[4]) by the MWP co-chairs In addition to the “focused exchange”, the MWP will also organise “investment-focused events” in the margins of the global dialogues or other in-person or hybrid dialogues and existing events. These investment-focused events aim to “[unlock] finance …[overcome] barriers to access to finance and [identify] investment opportunities and actionable solutions”, and will be organised by the UNFCCC Secretariat, the MWP co-chairs and supported by the climate champions (UNFCCC, 2022[3]).

Many different types of dialogues and events have already been, or are currently being, held under the auspices of the UNFCCC, as well as outside the UNFCCC framework. These events are held across a variety of subject areas, and have a variety of different objectives – some of which are closely related to the objectives of the MWP For example, the first Global Stocktake (GST) under the Paris Agreement, which includes a thematic track on mitigation, will conclude at COP28 in December 2023, and the MWP is specifically requested to “complement” the GST (UNFCCC, 2022[3]) The purpose, scope, frequency, participation, format, inputs, outputs and outcomes of current and previous discussions organised under the UNFCCC vary widely. To facilitate the MWP meeting its objective of urgently scaling up mitigation ambition and implementation it will be useful to assess experience with dialogues and other events inside and outside the UNFCCC to identify relevant lessons for the MWP – both in terms of substance (e.g. scope and focus of discussions) as well as process (e.g. format, stakeholders to involve, how to involve them etc.). It would also be useful to assess how the investment-focused events that will be organised under the guidance of the MWP co-chairs could most usefully interact with the MWP’s global dialogues

This paper highlights questions that could usefully be considered by the international community, including the MWP co-chairs, when deciding how to take forward the MWP. In addition, this paper outlines options for the focus, format, structure and participation of stakeholders in a focused exchange of views at the global dialogues, as well as the associated investment-focused events Decisions on these aspects will determine the impact of the MWP on the mitigation of GHG emissions, and it will therefore influence the extent to which the MWP meets its objectives. Moreover, the paper provides lessons from three case studies in selected sub-sectors where there has been a rapid scale-up of low-GHG technologies or systems. These lessons identify what types of “information” could be “exchanged” at upcoming MWP dialogues to facilitate a rapid up-scaling of promising mitigation policies, measures and systems. The structure of this paper is as follows. Section 2. provides some background and context on the MWP as well as on experience with relevant dialogues both inside and outside the UNFCCC process. Section 3. highlights possible options for the aim, scope, format, and participation of the global dialogues as well as for the investment-focused events of the MWP. Section 4. highlights successful examples of rapid growth in the deployment of low-GHG technologies or systems in three different sub-sectors and countries, as well as it outlines selected international climate mitigation initiatives and coalitions to identify possible lessons for the MWP. Section 5. highlights conclusions from the analysis

1 There will be a subsequent discussion in the UNFCCC process regarding whether the MWP will be extended beyond 2026.