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Current Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are not meeting the urgency or scale of the climate crisis. On the present course, they leave the world heading towards 3°C of warming – well beyond the 1.5°C target set in the Paris Agreement. This report positions NDCs as strategic national tools to drive inclusive growth, resilience, and public well-being.
The report presents ten transformative recommendations to help countries embed climate ambition into national development strategies. These are grouped under four themes: driving prosperity and stability, building healthy and resilient communities, ensuring effective and equitable implementation, and accelerating action and ambition. Collectively, they show how NDCs can become levers for green investment, job creation, and systemic reform – offering a pathway from climate risk to shared, sustainable prosperity. Governments must use the NDC cycle as an opportunity not only to ratchet ambition, but to make climate action a cornerstone of economic and social policy.
Warming trajectory: Current NDCs place the world on course for approximately 3°C of warming – far beyond the Paris Agreement’s goals of “well below 2°C”, with devastating implications for ecosystems, economies and public health.
Climate opportunity: NDCs should be viewed as strategic economic roadmaps – tools to drive inclusive growth, job creation and energy security, not just emissions cuts.
Finance misalignment: Trillions in investment are needed for the green transition, yet current policy environments are fragmented and often continue to subsidise fossil fuels.
Fossil fuel subsidies: Global fossil fuel subsidies reached $7 trillion in 2022, distorting markets and undermining climate targets. Phasing these out is essential for credible action.
Workforce transition: A just transition requires major investment in education, training, and inclusive employment pathways, ensuring workers are supported and not left behind.
Public health co-benefits: Well-designed NDCs improve lives now – through cleaner air, safer cities, better food systems and stronger health outcomes – building public trust in climate action.
Local empowerment: Local and Indigenous communities are crucial actors in climate solutions. National strategies must empower and resource them with autonomy and support.
Resilient infrastructure: Governments must future-proof critical systems – from energy to water to food – to withstand climate shocks and serve all populations equitably.
Governance and trust: Transparent, accountable systems and meaningful participation are essential to deliver a just transition and maintain support across society.
Immediate action, not future tech: Countries must prioritise proven solutions over speculative technologies. Rapid deployment of existing clean energy and adaptation measures is essential.
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