Nordic sustainability briefing: COP31 opens with record heat, a stalled truck-charging build-out and SME data tools
As COP31 opens, WMO and Copernicus data put 2026 warming near 1.47 °C and October as the warmest on record, while Nature reports that no country's climate plan includes quantified CO2-removal targets. A UN yearbook finds 44 of 96 climate indicators showing progress, and in Finland Kempower's change negotiations point to a slowing charging build-out for electric trucks.
WMO and Copernicus: 2026 warming near 1.47 °C so far, and October was the warmest on record
WMO's State of the Climate Update, released on the first day of COP31, puts January–September 2026 about 1.47 °C above the pre-industrial average. It says a very strong El Niño is set to add heat and extreme weather into 2027. Copernicus data show October 2026 was the warmest October on record, 1.75 °C above pre-industrial levels and the third month in a row above 1.5 °C.
Nature: no country's climate plan yet includes quantified CO2-removal targets as COP31 faces 1.5 °C overshoot
Nature reports that COP31 is the first UN climate meeting since confirmation that warming will overshoot 1.5 °C. Some scientists want delegates to discuss large-scale CO2 removal alongside emission cuts. According to one researcher quoted, no country has submitted clearly quantified removal targets to the UN.
Finnish fast-charging build-out slows; Kempower opens change negotiations as e-trucks lag expectations
Yle reports that Kempower announced change negotiations on 4 November, with charging-network construction slowing. Expensive electric trucks, fast-charging prices and grid-connection delays are holding back electrification of heavy transport. Professor Lassi Aarniovuori says the EU's 2035 charging target will not be met at the current pace.
UN Yearbook of Global Climate Action: 44 of 96 indicators show progress, energy efficiency gains run at about a quarter of the needed pace
The tenth Yearbook, published at COP31, finds 44 of 96 tracked indicators showing progress, 19 showing none and 33 lacking sufficient data. Energy efficiency is improving by about 1% a year against the 4% needed by 2030, and adaptation finance fell from USD 81.5 billion in 2022 to USD 64.1 billion in 2024. Explicit fossil-fuel subsidies fell from USD 1.4 trillion in 2022 to USD 725 billion in 2024.