Australia’s international climate targets create frequent misunderstandings, even among experts. Seemingly straightforward, the reality is that the targets are not as intuitive as they appear, with much of the most important detail hidden from view. This presentation draws back the curtain on our target, unpacking the most common misconceptions along the way. Doing so reveals that, far from meeting our Paris target ‘in a canter’ (as members of Government have recently claimed), on the Government’s own numbers we are expected to miss our Paris goal by a significant margin. Using the same budgeting approach, the presentation will also reveal where progress is being made, and where it is lacking, in Australia’s efforts to meet our international climate obligations.