NDC Update report

The 2020 NDC Update report by the NewClimate Institute evaluates the preparedness of countries to increase climate ambition during the first NDC update cycle, drawing on a survey of 98 policy makers and experts from 83 countries. The report highlights the tension between the urgency of the Paris Agreement goals and the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that while some countries may use green stimulus to accelerate transition, many others face economic constraints that threaten structural climate change.

• The report finds that the current NDC update cycle is unlikely to meet the necessary urgency for climate action, with many countries not planning to significantly increase their ambition levels.
• The development of Long-term Low Greenhouse Gas Emission Development Strategies (LTSs) has been broadly underestimated, leading to severe delays in many countries and a missed opportunity to inform the ambition of updated NDCs.
• The COVID-19 pandemic presents a dual impact: it offers an opportunity for green stimulus and demonstrates the possibility of radical behavioural change, but it also risks diverting public budgets toward short-term spending and the unconditional bailing out of polluting industries like mining and aviation.
• There is a significant disparity in how countries will recover from the pandemic; developed nations may accelerate clean technology markets, whereas developing countries face increased debt, reduced liquidity, and fragile supply chains not currently accounted for in NDC projections.
• The NewClimate Institute urges countries to communicate new, high-ambition commitments immediately rather than waiting for the next formal NDC update cycle in 2025, as the scale of the task may become unmanageable by then.

APA

NewClimate Institute (2020). NDC Update report. http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/ndc-update-report-december-2020-come-together

Chicago

NewClimate Institute. NDC Update report. 2020. http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/ndc-update-report-december-2020-come-together.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=NewClimate Institute |title=NDC Update report |date=7 December 2020 |url=http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/ndc-update-report-december-2020-come-together |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{newclimateinstitute2020ndc, author = {{NewClimate Institute}}, title = {{NDC Update report}}, institution = {NewClimate Institute}, year = {2020}, month = dec, url = {http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/ndc-update-report-december-2020-come-together}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }