by Christian Holz and Xolisa Ngwadla

The global stocktake, established in Article 14 of the Paris Agreement, is a central component of the provisions that are intended to raise ambition over time. Parties agreed in Paris on the general scope, objective and purpose of the stocktake, yet specific modalities will still have to be developed. This paper briefly analyses provisions of the Agreement that have a bearing on the stocktake, and outlines in detail the deliberative space in which Parties will have to make decisions to fulfil the potential of an effective stocktake, particularly in respect of mitigation, adaptation and finance. It proposes a typology to help navigate these deliberations and make specific suggestions of options that Parties might want to consider. This includes proposals for a process for the stocktake that takes into account its 'backward-looking' (assessing implementation) and 'forward-looking' (increasing ambition in future) aspects. Finally, it proposes innovative ways in which the stocktake can be designed to be done “in light of equity and the best available science”.