Global leaders can Trump-proof the Paris Agreement

The United States is likely to drop out of the Paris Agreement or the overall global climate convention, but new research from The Australian National University (ANU) suggests a Trump Presidency could create new opportunities to reduce carbon emissions. Dr Luke Kemp from ANU said Donald Trump's victory at the US election could be the moment that keeping global warming under 2 degrees Celsius became unachievable. "A future President Trump can, and likely will, drop out of the Paris Agreement. Direct withdrawal will take four years," said Dr Kemp from the ANU Fenner School of Environment and Society. "Trump could instead drop out from the overall climate convention. That would only take one year and would result in automatic withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. "In any case, Trump's domestic energy policy will lead to the US overshooting its domestic targets." The US withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, or blatantly missing its climate targets, could be near fatal for a deal which relies on being global, Dr Kemp said.