The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change was agreed more than 20 years ago, but global CO2 emissions have continued to rise. Fossil fuels still dominate the global energy supply and we are on course for a 3-5⁰C increase in global surface temperatures by the end of the century. July 2015 was the warmest month ever recorded for the globe. The OECD has been working in co-operation with its partners to identify how countries need to resolve misalignments between climate goals and policies in other domains that risk undermining climate action and making the low-carbon transition more costly. With the carbon clock ticking, the Paris COP21 conference in December must give a clear and credible directional signal that governments can and will transition from the carbon-intensive present to a low carbon resilient future.