Climate change is posing growing  risks to global economic and social stability, particularly as irreversible climate “tipping points” are triggered. Governments must act swiftly to raise ambition and implement policy actions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

The scale and pace of action required is immense, but OECD evidence and analysis show that net zero is achievable – and that stronger climate action offers clear benefits for economic growth, development and resilience.

Providing governments with clarity on how to harness the benefits of the transition and translate climate ambition into action, the OECD project “Building Climate, Economic and Social Resilience” draws on climate-related work from over 20 OECD policy committees. The 2025 flagship report Fast-tracking Net Zero by Building Climate and Economic Resilience: A Summary for Policymakers distils insights from the Net Zero+ Policy Paper Series and offers guidance on implementing a multidisciplinary, co-ordinated and systems-based approach to climate action in a complex and changing world. It builds on the project’s 2023 flagship report Climate and Economic Resilience in a Changing World.  Together they address:

• Maintaining momentum on climate action in the face of competing policy priorities and disruptions.
• Making the net-zero transition swift, resilient and durable, including by future-proofing strategies, evaluating the economic implications of accelerated action, and leveraging near-term payoffs and positive tipping points.
• Placing people at the centre of the net-zero transition by recognising and addressing its wide-ranging social implications and acknowledging that effective climate action depends on public support.
• Understanding climate risks – in particular Earth system tipping points and their implications for near-term policy.
• Building resilience to climate impacts and implementing climate adaptation measures.
• Driving systems-based approaches, including a focus on the economics of climate adaptation and forests as a cornerstone of climate action.

Phase I focused on accelerating and strengthening resilience in climate action while also responding to other urgent social and economic needs in face of disruptive events of recent years, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the widespread implications of Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine. The key findings of Phase I of Net Zero+ have been distilled into a short summary, which highlights key messages and summarises relevant findings from each of the report’s three substantive parts.