African islands under threat: what to do about Trump’s withdrawal from climate change agreement

President Donald Trump’s executive order withdrawing the US from the Paris Agreement raises the question of the implications for small African Indian Ocean island states.

The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It entered into force in November 2016 and aims to limit global temperature rises below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels.

The executive order, “Putting America First in International Environmental Agreements”, signifies the intention of the US to withdraw from this agreement.