How Is It Different from Previous Big Climate Gatherings?
Unlike previous attempts to forge agreements, the Paris gathering will see each country arrive with its own commitments to do what it believes it is capable of doing to reduce its carbon emissions. These commitments are known as Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs). The United States, for example, has pledged that, by 2025, it will reduce its carbon emissions by 26 percent from 2005 levels, while China has pledged its emissions will peak by 2030.