Global carbon emissions reach record high despite green efforts

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🗞️ Driving the news: Global carbon emissions reached a record 40.8 billion metric tons of CO₂-equivalent in 2024, according to the Energy Institute’s Statistical Review of World Energy 2025
• This marks an increase of 0.5 billion tons over 2023, despite record investments in renewables and widespread net-zero pledges
• The data underscore that clean energy growth is still being outpaced by rising global energy demand

🔭 The context: The U.S., China, and India together account for over half of global emissions, with contrasting trajectories: U.S. emissions have declined steadily since 2000, while China’s and India’s have quintupled since 1990 as their economies expanded
• Renewables deployment is accelerating worldwide, yet fossil fuels remain dominant, particularly in developing regions where energy demand is surging alongside population and economic growth

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: The findings highlight a central challenge of the energy transition: adding renewable capacity without commensurate reductions in fossil fuel use fails to lower overall emissions
• Continued increases risk overshooting climate targets and exacerbating climate impacts, particularly as methane and other potent greenhouse gases remain significant contributors
• Addressing energy equity while cutting emissions is critical to align with Paris Agreement goals

⏭️ What's next: Policymakers face pressure to implement stronger measures to accelerate fossil fuel phase-outs and improve energy efficiency, especially in fast-growing economies
• The coming years will likely see more focus on carbon pricing, industrial decarbonisation, and structural reforms to reduce coal and oil dependence
• Monitoring and accounting for methane emissions and land-use impacts are expected to feature more prominently in climate reporting

💬 One quote: “We’re adding clean energy to the mix, but we’re not yet subtracting fossil energy — that’s why global emissions continue to rise,” writes Robert Rapier

📈 One stat: Global emissions rose nearly 1% per year on average over the past decade, despite strong climate pledges and unprecedented renewable energy investment

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