CATF to call for climate action grounded in implementation, investment, and innovation at COP31
Clean Air Task Force (CATF) will send an expert delegation to the 31st UN Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye, calling on world leaders to move from climate commitments toward implementation by accelerating clean energy deployment, cutting methane emissions, mobilizing investment, and building partnerships that strengthen energy security, affordability, competitiveness, and economic development.
“Governments are dealing right now with volatile energy markets, conflict, trade tensions, and intense competition for investment and supply chains,” said Jonathan Banks, Chief of Programs and Advocacy at CATF. “The disruption around the Strait of Hormuz is a reminder that energy security, affordability, and climate are not separate challenges — and COP31 needs to respond to the world as it actually is. That means fewer conversations about setting another target and more focus on getting projects built, mobilizing capital, strengthening supply chains, and forging partnerships that can deliver cleaner, more secure energy systems.”
Türkiye’s COP31 Presidency has put implementation at the center of its Action Agenda, with priorities that create clear opportunities to connect climate action with energy, economic, and development goals. The Presidency is elevating zero waste and methane reduction, with a goal to halve projected growth in municipal solid waste by 2035, as well as green industrialization, with an emphasis on strengthening the circular economy. Clean energy and electrification are also central to the agenda, with a goal of increasing electricity’s share of global final energy consumption from just over 20% today to 35% by 2035.
“Countries want energy that is affordable and reliable, but they also want greater control over where it comes from and less exposure to disruptions half a world away,” said Terra Rogers, Senior Director, Clean Power at CATF. “Electrification can help deliver that, but a target of 35% by 2035 is only meaningful if countries can build enough clean power to support it. That means grids and renewables, but it also means accelerating nuclear, next-generation geothermal, and other clean firm technologies that can provide power around the clock. We’d like to see the conversation focus on giving countries more options to build secure, clean energy systems — rather than prescribing a single pathway for everyone.”
CATF’s delegation will engage policymakers, industry leaders, investors, and civil society to advance progress in four key areas:
- Driving innovation across the full suite of clean energy solutions. Meeting rising global energy demand while reducing emissions requires expanding, not narrowing, the range of available climate solutions. CATF will advocate for greater investment, international collaboration, and policy support for advanced renewables, carbon capture and storage, advanced nuclear energy, fusion energy, geothermal, and zero-carbon fuels.
- Anchoring decarbonization in electrification and clean, reliable power. Electrification will be essential to reducing emissions from transportation, industry, buildings, and other sectors, but its climate and economic benefits depend on abundant, affordable, reliable, and increasingly clean electricity. CATF will make the case for pairing greater electrification with investment in grids and flexibility and a diverse portfolio of clean power, including renewables, nuclear energy, and next-generation geothermal.
- Closing the waste methane gap. Reducing methane emissions is one of the fastest ways to slow near-term warming. CATF will push for stronger implementation of methane commitments across the energy, agriculture, and waste sectors, with particular attention to waste methane, which accounts for roughly 20% of anthropogenic methane emissions. The COP31 Presidency’s focus on zero waste and the circular economy provides an important opportunity to elevate a sector where emissions are expected to grow significantly as global waste generation rises.
- Building durable clean industrial and cross-regional partnerships. As geopolitical competition and trade tensions reshape global supply chains and investment, CATF will promote partnerships that accelerate technology deployment, strengthen and diversify supply chains, mobilize investment, and align decarbonization with countries’ economic and development priorities. That includes greater cooperation across regions and between governments, industry, financial institutions, and other actors.
Across its COP31 engagement, CATF will emphasize that the success of the conference should not be measured solely by new pledges or high-level participation. Meaningful progress can also come through ministerial cooperation, bilateral agreements, investment, and partnerships among governments, industry, financial institutions, and civil society. Explore CATF’s full list of engagements at COP31 here.
Press Contact
Natalie Volk, Senior Communications Manager, [email protected], +1 703-785-9580
About Clean Air Task Force
Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With 30 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world. Visit catf.us and follow @cleanaircatf.
