The Paris climate agreement is an international agreement reached in 2015 aimed at reducing carbon emissions, slowing rising global temperatures and helping countries deal with the effects of climate change.
As per CBS News, the final text of the agreement was adopted at the Conference of Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, known as COP21, in December 2015. The U.S., which took the lead in negotiating the deal, signed onto the agreement in April 2016, along with China, the European Union and 171 other nations. China and the U.S. account for nearly 40 percent of global carbon emissions.
The agreement took effect in November of that year, after nations accounting for 55 percent of global emissions ratified the treaty. As of May 2017, 147 parties have ratified the agreement, out of 195 who signed onto the accord.
In latest buzz, President Trump is said to be considering withdrawing the United States from the Paris climate agreement. An American withdrawal would not scuttle the Paris accord, but it could seriously weaken global efforts to avoid drastic climate change.
Find out what could happen if the United States leaves at The New York Times.