Global Civil Society & the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

Climate Action


Every person, in every country in every continent will be impacted in some shape or form by climate change. There is a climate cataclysm looming, and we are underprepared for what this could mean.

Climate change is caused by human activities and threatens life on earth as we know it. With rising greenhouse gas emissions, climate change is occurring at rates much faster than anticipated. Its impacts can be devastating and include extreme and changing weather patterns and rising sea levels.

If left unchecked, climate change will undo a lot of the development progress made over the past years. It will also provoke mass migrations that will lead to instability and wars.

To limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre- industrial levels, emissions must already be decreasing and need to be cut by almost half by 2030, just six years away. But, we are drastically off track from this target.

Urgent and transformative actions going beyond mere plans and promises are crucial. It requires raising ambition, covering entire economies and moving towards climate-resilient development, while outlining a clear path to achieve net-zero emissions. Immediate measures are necessary to avoid catastrophic consequences and secure a sustainable future for generations to come.

Name Acronym Founded City HQ Country/Territory HQ Type I Type II

International Telecommunication Union

ITU 1985 Geneva Switzerland B g

International Trade Union Confederation

ITUC 2006 Brussels Belgium A yt

International Tree Foundation

ITF 1924 Oxford UK G f

International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

IUCN 1948 Gland Switzerland A y

International Union of Agroforestry

IUAF 2019 Prague Czechia C

International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences

IUAES 1948 Osaka Japan B

International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers Associations

IUF 1920 Geneva Switzerland B

International Union of Forest Research Organizations

IUFRO 1892 Vienna Austria B y

International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics

IUGG 1919 Potsdam Germany A y

International Union of Marine Insurance

IUMI 1874 Hamburg Germany C

International Union of Property Owners

1923 Brussels Belgium C

International Venture Philanthropy Center

IVPC 2015 Weybridge UK C

International Water Management Institute

IWMI 1984 Colombo Sri Lanka E j

International Water Mist Association

IWMA 1998 Hamburg Germany D

International Wind Synthesis Association

IWSA Boston MA USA N

International Windship Association

IWSA 2014 London UK D

International Women's Rights Project

IWRP 1998 G

International Wool Textile Organisation

IWTO 1929 Brussels Belgium C t

International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs

IWGIA 1968 Copenhagen Denmark F

International Working Group on Satellite-Based Emergency Mapping

IWG-SEM 2012 F y

International World Games Association

IWGA 1980 Lausanne Switzerland E y

International Young Nature Friends

IYNF 1975 Prague Czechia C

International Youth Council

IYC 2007 G

International Zeolite Association

IZA 1967 Caen France C v

International Zinc Association

IZA 1990 Brussels Belgium C yt

International-Lawyers.Org

INTLawyers 2010 Geneva Switzerland F

Internationale Rheinregulierung

IRR 1892 Rorschach Switzerland G g

Internationals amis de la nature

IAN 1895 Vienna Austria D

INTERSOS

1992 Rome Italy G

Intersputnik

1971 Moscow Russia C g

Interstate Council on Hydrometeorology of the Countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States

ICH 1992 J g

Investor Group on Climate Change

IGCC Sydney NSW Australia G

IOC Sub-Commission for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions

IOCARIBE 1982 Cartagena de Indias Colombia E g

ISEA Foundation

New York NY USA G f

ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute

ISEAS 1968 Singapore Singapore G j

Islamic Aid

London UK N

Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Development

ICCD 1977 Karachi Pakistan F t

Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector

ICD 1999 Jeddah Saudi Arabia K g

Islamic Relief Worldwide

IRWW 1984 Birmingham UK F

Islands and Small States Institute, Malta

ISSI 1989 Msida Malta E j

Jacob Blaustein Institute for Desert Research

BIDR 1974 Beersheba Israel G j

Japan International Volunteer Centre

JVC 1980 Tokyo Japan G

Jesuit Conference of European Provincials

JCEP Brussels Belgium F

Jesuit European Social Centre

JESC 1956 Brussels Belgium E

JesuitenWeltweit Deutschland

Nuremberg Germany G

JIN Climate and Sustainability

1994 Groningen Netherlands G

JOC Europe

1925 Brussels Belgium E

Johanniter International

JOIN 2000 Brussels Belgium E

John Paul II Foundation for the Sahel

1984 Ouagadougou Burkina Faso F f

Join For Water

1977 Ghent Belgium G

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