- ImpactWe help parliaments to become greener and to implement the Paris agreement.We support democracy by strengthening parliamentsWe work to increase women’s representation in parliament and empower women MPs.We defend the human rights of parliamentarians and help them uphold the rights of all.We help parliaments fight terrorism, cyber warfare and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.We encourage youth participation in parliaments and empower young MPs.We support parliaments in implementing the SDGs with a particular focus on health and climate change.
- Parliaments
Nearly every country in the world has some form of parliament. Parliamentary systems fall into two categories: bicameral and unicameral. Out of 190 national parliaments in the world, 78 are bicameral (156 chambers) and 112 are unicameral, making a total of 268 chambers of parliament with some 44,000 members of parliament. IPU membership is made up of 180 national parliamentsFind a national parliament
The Swiss National Council © The Swiss Parliament
We help strengthen parliaments to make them more representative and effective.. - Knowledge
Discover the IPU's resources
Our library of essential resources for parliamentsGlobal data for and about national parliamentsLatest data and reports about women in parliamentResolutions, declarations and outcomes adopted by IPU MembersRecent innovations in the way parliaments workThe latest climate change legislation from the London School of Economics' database
Solar panels in Spain © AFP
Climate change
We help parliaments to become greener and to implement the Paris agreement.
Climate change is killing people and destroying lives, development, peace and security all over the world. That's why climate action has been recognized as the top policy priority for the IPU.
The ultimate goal of the IPU’s action on climate change is to allow all people to live on a healthier planet with warming limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
The IPU helps parliaments make progress on the Paris Agreement as well as other climate treaties, accelerate decarbonization and reduce the carbon footprint within parliaments themselves through its research, tools and meetings.
All year, the IPU organizes events for parliamentarians to come together and exchange good practice when it comes to legislating, budgeting or scrutinizing government action on climate change.
The IPU works closely with UN partners on climate change, especially the United Nations Climate Change Conference held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The IPU also endeavours to reduce its own carbon footprint, including its Assemblies.
Number of climate change laws of the world
5000+
The IPU is a partner of the London School of Economics' database of climate change legislation
Parliaments for the Planet
Discover the IPU's climate campaign designed to mobilize parliament to take action on the climate emergency
Latest news and stories on climate change
Press releases
06/12/2023
Parliaments were in the spotlight on 6 December 2023 in Dubai at COP28, the UN Climate Change Conference, at a day of parliamentary meetings organized by the IPU and the Federal National Council (FNC), the Parliament of the United Arab
Press releases
20/11/2023
The IPU and Adaptation at Altitude, a programme of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, have published a new Issues Brief for parliamentarians: Responding to climate change in the mountains: Opportunities for parliamentarians to act. The Brief is designed
Voices
16/11/2023
What did COP27, the UN Climate Conference which took place in Egypt in 2022, achieve from a parliamentary perspective? And what were the lessons learnt to pass on to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) who are hosting COP28 in just
Voices
08/11/2023
In the lead-up to COP28, the UN climate conference, discover how to use the global database of over 5000 laws and policies on climate change in this 2-minute video. The database is managed by the London School of Economics Grantham
Press releases
26/10/2023
The 2023 Cremer-Passy Prize, the MP of the year award, has been awarded to Mr. Samuelu Penitala Teo, Speaker of the Parliament of Tuvalu, in recognition of his outstanding record on climate action. Mr. Teo was awarded the prize in
Climate change
Latest publications on climate change
Issue briefs
This Issues brief is designed to help parliamentarians identify policies and actions to adapt to the consequences of climate change in mountain ecoysystems.
10 actions for greener parliaments (and those who work in them)
This brochure presents the highlights from the toolkit Disaster Risk Reduction to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals published by the IPU and UNDRR in 2021. The toolkit is designed to help parliaments and parliamentarians to initiate, strengthen and oversee national
Climate change
Related events
Climate change