McKinsey’s COP Insights

COP refers to the United Nations’ annual conference on climate change. Its 28th meeting (COP28) is scheduled to begin November 30, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The global stocktake is an assessment of progress made toward mitigating global warming since the Paris Agreement in 2015. The results from the first-ever global stocktake will be discussed at COP28.

Net zero is an ideal state where the amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) released into the earth’s atmosphere is balanced by the amount of GHGs removed. Decarbonization efforts are needed to reach net zero.

McKinsey Sustainability recaps the news and announcements leaders need to know from the annual UN climate event.

McKinsey Sustainability recaps the news and announcements leaders need to know from the annual UN climate event.

As the conference gets underway, McKinsey Sustainability recaps the news and announcements leaders need to know.

As the conference gets underway, McKinsey Sustainability recaps the news and announcements leaders need to know.

Nature-related commitments by Fortune Global 500 companies are rising, but progress is incremental and from a very low base.

CO₂ removal (CDR) capacity is far from the gigaton scale needed to round out businesses’ net-zero efforts by 2050. We explore a mature CDR market’s potential and possible first-mover advantages.

A successful net-zero transition will require achieving not one objective but four. We offer a guide to getting it right.

Increasing resilience to climate change requires a more systematic response than ever before. Governments and public entities play a central role in defining, enabling, and executing it.

This interactive tracker aims to measure the progress and preparedness of ten key sectors on the path to achieving global net-zero emissions by 2050. It may be viewed as a contribution to the first global stocktake of progress against the Paris Agreement.

AI, machine learning, the Internet of Things, and other technologies can play a critical role in decarbonization, and the cloud can significantly speed up and catalyze this process.

Civilization has been built on a foundation of climate stability that no longer exists. Adaptation is now as important as mitigation, and so is understanding its interrelated requirements.

Without a step change in action to increase land-use efficiency, growing demand for food, fuel, and natural capital may require additional land equivalent to the total cropland of Brazil by 2030.

It is possible to address Africa’s large and growing energy needs while simultaneously transitioning to sustainable energy production on the continent.

To thrive amid shocks to the net-zero economy, leaders are shifting strategies to position themselves to win when the skies clear up.

What would it take to raise minimum living standards and get on a net-zero path in this decade? Our research explores twin ambitions for people and the planet.

This McKinsey report offers a detailed look at the economic and societal impact of the transition to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Investment in recycling is accelerating. Now may be the time to derisk through business model innovations and by pursuing investment opportunities further upstream.

To fulfill its ambitious net-zero agenda, the European Union would need to significantly increase the speed and scale of the transition while ensuring affordability, security, and growth.

To provide critical materials for the energy transition, the metals and minerals industries must adapt their global supply chains.

Sustainable farming is necessary for decarbonization. But to get the world to net zero, the agriculture sector must take action along the entire value chain.

Green bank financing could mobilize hundreds of billions in investment toward net-zero emissions by 2050 as well as advancing environmental justice in the US.

Investments in climate technology are still increasing, defying the headwinds that affected most capital markets. We identify eight factors for deploying capital in this resilient space.

New challenges—and opportunities—have emerged for green business builders. A set of actions could help companies scale during these uncertain times.

As climate change impact becomes increasingly apparent, the adoption of decarbonization commitments is accelerating. Companies are acting rapidly and decisively to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and neutralize residual emissions.