Stronger NDCs With Cities, States, and Regions: Recommendations for National Governments

Working Paper

This Working Paper is part of Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) for Climate Action, Integrated Climate Action and Urban Efficiency & Climate within WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities, Economics and Finance. Reach out to Nadia Shah Naidoo for more information.

Climate change poses an unprecedented threat to societies and ecosystems worldwide. Without the rapid reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the globe and bold action to reduce climate impacts, the world will face devastating consequences to be felt for generations to come. Yet current climate commitments are not in line with pathways needed to achieve net zero emissions and meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. Countries can significantly enhance the ambition of their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) through a more collaborative and integrated approach with subnational governments to fully align with the Paris Agreement goals. This document supports national governments in the facilitation of input from subnational governments in the NDC development process. It has been written with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change's 2025 NDC deadline in mind, but it will support countries beyond this milestone and can be considered a tool for designing all successive NDCs.

The document demonstrates how the climate action potential presented by subnational governments can not only encourage greater confidence among national governments to meet climate targets but also enhance the credibility of the NDCs themselves. Following this section, "Research Approach" describes the methodology informing this document. "Background" discusses the role of multilevel partnerships in achieving net zero GHG emissions and enhancing climate resilience. "Document Orientation" situates the reader with a legend and additional context to navigate this document. "Developing Stronger NDCs with Cities, States, and Regions" puts forward a series of eight recommendations for action across three stages that support national governments to strengthen their NDCs by collaborating with and integrating subnational content. Finally, "Conclusion" summarizes the key findings, recommendations, and implications of this research.

Key Findings:

1. National governments are encouraged to review the status of multilevel partnerships, the present level of subnational content in their NDCs, and the potential contribution subnational governments can make toward achieving national climate mitigation and adaptation commitments in line with development goals.
2. National governments can plan for strengthened collaboration with subnational governments through a collective vision and meaningful stakeholder engagement to foster a shared sense of ownership and responsibility for developing more ambitious NDCs.
3. National governments can develop ambitious NDCs that incorporate strong subnational participation and content by integrating subnational data, trends, targets, risks, policies, and actions, creating greater incentive for joint implementation across all government levels.

Executive Summary:

The climate crisis impacts every aspect of our society, economy, and planet. Its effects transcend borders, sectors, and populations and require ambitious solutions that are built on the foundations of multilevel and cross-sectoral collaboration and partnerships. Collaboration between national and subnational governments is particularly critical since cities are responsible for more than 70 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and 80 percent of global gross domestic product. While national government's control key climate policy levers like building codes and efficiency standards, subnational governments-including cities, towns, provinces, states, and regions (hereby referred to as cities, states and regions)-are on the front lines of climate change impacts and responses. This document supports national governments in strengthening the subnational content of the NDCs to reflect the highest possible ambition and increase the likelihood of implementation. While the authors acknowledge that collaborating with subnational governments beyond the NDC development process is critical, NDC financing and implementation falls beyond the scope of this document and may be addressed in future publications.