DECODING INTENDED NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONS (INDCS)

The document outlines the importance of Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) as public outlines of national climate plans starting in 2020. It establishes a set of criteria for a 'strong' INDC—defined as fair, ambitious, feasible, and transparent—and provides a detailed six-question evaluation framework. This framework guides users to check for clear statements of intent (mitigation and adaptation), alignment with climate science (specifically the 2 degrees C goal), fairness based on national circumstances, the strength of the design process, implementation feasibility, and methodological transparency.

• A strong INDC must be fair, ambitious, and aligned with the UNFCCC objective of avoiding the worst impacts of climate change, while remaining feasible to implement and transparently reported.
• Mitigation commitments in INDCs can be structured as 'actions' (specific measures), 'outcomes' (specific results like GHG levels or renewable energy increases), or a combination of both. Quantified outcomes are preferred because they enhance comparability, boost credibility with finance providers, and simplify the estimation of aggregate global GHG effects.
• To align with climate science and the UNFCCC goal of limiting warming to 2 degrees C, global emissions must peak by 2020 and net GHG emissions must be phased out over the long term. The document warns that delaying reductions can lead to unrealistic and costly rates of decline later in the century.
• Fairness and ambition in an INDC should be evaluated based on a country's emissions responsibility, economic capacity (such as GDP per capita), capabilities, and vulnerability. Ambition is demonstrated when a contribution maximizes a country's potential to drive transformation in key sectors like energy and forestry.
• A robust INDC process requires high-level political commitment, coordination among relevant ministries, and inclusivity of stakeholder perspectives to ensure the plan is not 'unmoored' from national priorities and development plans.
• Feasibility depends on the clear articulation of legal authorities and policy instruments. For developing countries, this includes specifying the type and quantity of international support (finance, technology, and capacity building) required to achieve specific goals.
• Transparency in INDCs is essential for determining the collective global impact on temperature. This requires disclosing assumptions, methodological approaches for accounting for GHG emissions and removals, and the specific scope (sectors, gases, and geography) of the commitment.

APA

World Resources Institute (2015). DECODING INTENDED NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONS (INDCS). https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/Decoding_INDCs.pdf

Chicago

World Resources Institute. DECODING INTENDED NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONS (INDCS). 2015. https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/Decoding_INDCs.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=DECODING INTENDED NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONS (INDCS) |date=July 2015 |url=https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/Decoding_INDCs.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2015decoding, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{DECODING INTENDED NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONS (INDCS)}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2015}, month = jul, url = {https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/uploads/Decoding_INDCs.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }