Blisteringly hot, 2023 earned the distinction of the hottest year on record. Yet, we know last year was not an outlier but rather a trend in the wrong direction, as the intensifying impacts of climate change create devastating consequences for people, communities, and ecosystems worldwide.

We are nearly halfway through the decisive decade for climate action, and we are off track in meeting global targets. The good news is there’s never been more progress to build on as we work to course correct. The backlash from the fossil fuel industry and other incumbents that we’re seeing on climate policies, organisations, and frontline leaders is, in some ways, a sign of the impact we’re having.

As a community, we’ve stepped up to push back on some of these challenges — for example, developing legal defenses and durability strategies to ensure that environmental and social risks can be reflected in investment decisions, and rapidly responding to misinformation on the environmental impacts of electric vehicles.

But there is more to do. Under the most optimistic scenario, the current likelihood of limiting global warming to 1.5° C is just 14%. Now is the moment for all of philanthropy to step up and work together and with others in groundbreaking new ways to supercharge transformative solutions in 2024.

In 2024, we have an opportunity to build on the progress we’re seeing and accelerate action. For this year, here are three key areas where the global community can help the world move faster in turning promises into tangible actions

1. Phasing out fossil fuels. COP28 signalled the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era. But the gap between what governments have committed to and what they are doing is vast. To truly transition the energy sector, we must both ramp up the good and phase out the bad.

Thanks in part to bold philanthropic initiatives advancing renewable energy and electric vehicles, we are making great strides in increasing the good. Today, renewables are the cheapest form of electricity generation almost everywhere, and the adoption of zero-emission vehicles of all types (cars, trucks, buses, two- and three-wheelers) is growing exponentially. 

But we must also tackle the other half of the equation — phasing out fossil fuels. COP28 provided an important hook, with text agreed in the Global Stocktake by all countries calling on parties to “drive the transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner.”

Now is the time to seize this opening, building on developments like the United States’ recent decision to pause permits for LNG exports. One place to start would be advocating to end the more than $1 trillion in global fossil fuel subsidies — a new record high reached in 2022 — that directly undermine governments’ climate goals.

Just imagine what we could achieve instead if these funds were applied toward expanding energy access through renewable resources and supporting a just transition for workers and communities. Now is the time to double down on transitioning away from fossil fuels, building on the recognition by all governments at COP28 of the need to do so.

The opportunities and the challenges before us this year are massive, particularly with elections scheduled in more than 60 countries that collectively represent half of the world’s population. We need clear-eyed approaches that bring together all parts of society to address the tradeoffs inherent in the transition to a low-carbon economy. We need more unconventional partnerships, including with those philanthropy has not typically engaged with, such as corporates, to elevate climate action to an unprecedented scale.

The Global Methane Hub, an initiative that organises the field of philanthropists, experts, nonprofits, and government organisations to maximise methane reductions, exemplifies this collaborative spirit.

Similarly, the new Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA) initiative led by the World Economic Forum, with support from the Climate Leadership Initiative and ClimateWorks, aims to identify new public, private, and philanthropic climate partnerships that can accelerate action beyond what each sector can do alone. 

We must fund climate like we want it to win. This means moving resources faster to the people and places that need them the most and have been historically underrepresented by philanthropic investments.

We need to break through the plateau in climate philanthropy funding that we saw in 2022, so it finally surpasses less than two percent of overall philanthropic contributions. And we need to break down old barriers that no longer serve us, like the division between climate mitigation and adaptation. 

Now is a moment for all funders to look for opportunities to make a step change in catalysing action, working through radical collaborations, and accelerating people-centered solutions to ensure a future where no one is left behind.