Exploring Connections Between the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

POLICY BRIEF

Exploring connections between the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

The analysis underlying the tool is based on disaggregat- Key insights ing each of 161 NDCs into “activities” (specific strands • Nationally determined contributions (NDCs) under of future action under the NDC). These were then coded for the Paris Agreement are mainly statements of the their connections to each of the 17 SDGs and then to the 169 actions a country intends to take to reduce SDG targets. This process yielded more than 7000 activities. greenhouse gas emissions, but many indicate other priorities and ambitions that contribute to broader NDC-SDG Connections allows users to explore, firstly, how sustainable development. NDC activities link up with the ambitions of the SDGs and • The new NDC-SDG Connections tool can identify the their targets at global and national levels. It can also dis- most important overlaps and potential synergies aggregate results at the level of world regions or other com- between the NDCs and the 2030 Agenda for mon country groupings such as those of the World Bank. Sustainable Development. • The strongest links between the NDCs and the Going down to the level of SDG targets, the tool quantifies Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are found in links between NDC activities and individual targets under the areas of water, food and energy. each SDG. It also links the targets to specific types of climate action identified within the NDC activities. This part • However, not all environmental SDGs are equally reflected in the NDC commitments. For example, of the analysis reveals – especially at the national level – there are four times fewer activities related to SDG how climate plans can be meaningfully complemented with 14: Life Below Water than to SDG 15: Life on Land. sustainable development strategies.

• The social SDGs are highly under-represented in Additionally, the tool provides insight into how activities NDC commitments compared to the environmental under NDCs confirm the interlinked character of the 2030 and economic goals; in particular health, education Agenda, showing how climate activities under one SDG and gender equality (SDGs 3, 4 and 5, respectively). interlink synergistically with other SDGs. • The NDCs clearly reinforce the interlinked character of sustainable development. Several SDG themes 3. The 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement (i.e. socio-economic sectoral categories) are The 2030 Agenda encompasses 17 SDGs, 169 targets and a addressed by numerous climate actions, indicating declaration text articulating the principles of integration, that there are multiple potential synergies and universality, transformation and a global partnership. The opportunities for policy coherence. SDGs integrate the social, environmental and economic

1. Introduction PARTNERSHIPS NO 17 FOR THE GOALS 1 POVERTY The 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement are both univer- PEACE AND ZERO 16 JUSTICE 2 HUNGER sal visions and are both based on being implemented from the

“bottom-up”, meaning that countries identify their own LIFE ON GOOD HEALTH 15 LAND 3 AND WELL-BEING priorities, needs and ambitions (Mbeva and Pauw 2016; Car- raro 2016). Following this paradigm shift towards voluntary

LIFE BELOW QUALITY binding contributions, the world is now moving on to discuss WATER 14 4 EDUCATION how to coherently implement both agendas. First attempts The size of the coloured segments have already been made to examine the alignment between indicates how many NDC climate activities correspond to each SDG. implementing the Paris Agreement, the 2030 Agenda and na- CLIMATE GENDER 13 ACTION 5 EQUALITY tional development plans and strategies (see e.g. Pahuja and Click a segment to access more detailed analysis of NDC-SDG Raj 2017; UNFCCC 2017; Northrop et al. 2016). However, connections for that SDG. until now there has not been a comprehensive global analysis RESPONSIBLE CLEAN WATER 12 CONSUMPTION 6 AND SANITATION of how climate actions could contribute to the SDGs. AND PRODUCTION

2. The NDC-SDG Connections tool SUSTAINABLE CITIES AFFORDABLE AND 11 AND COMMUNITIES 7 CLEAN ENERGY This brief presents a new online tool, NDC-SDG Connec- REDUCED DECENT WORK AND INEQUALITIES 8 ECONOMIC GROWTH tions (ndc-sdg.info), developed jointly by the Stockholm 10 INDUSTRY, INNOVATION 9 AND INFRASTRUCTURE Environment Institute (SEI) and the German Development Institute/Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE). It also offers some insights into links between the NDCs Figure 1: NDC activities in the 17 SDGs and SDGs at global level to illustrate the tool’s potential. Source: NDC-SDG Connections (www.ndc-sdg.info)

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SDG 2: Zero Hunger

Climate actions formulated in NDCs exhaustively target agricultural production and food security. Climate smart agriculture is at the core of countries’ climate ambitions to end hunger. Overall, SDG2-related issues are second most often mentioned.

becomes an NDC (although a handful of countries chose to Clim 1 ate-sm revise them before converting them into NDCs ). For the art and ed su Fe sta d… in purposes of the NDC-SDG Connections tool, both NDCs er an ab liz le ti a er g F ri and intended NDCs were analysed. cu n lt io u t r a e ig r Ir … The Paris Agreement is built on a bottom-up approach, / d e o m o 2.5 2.1 o ih c l MAINTAIN END HUNGER IN e meaning that countries are free to determine their own n I v i GENETIC DIVER… ALL ITS FORMS l SDG2 T A L . R G i climate targets and instruments, expressed in the NDCs. . E . T v e S e

g s

a t l o i n Under the provisions of the Paris Agreement, each country c o a

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of crop Diversi will be asked to submit an updated NDC every five years, ZERO

f HUNGER with the aim of ratcheting up ambition compared with s i c 2 a

i o the previous NDC. n

2.2 2.4 END A MALNUTRITIO... g ENSURE r o SUSTAINABLE… f o r While NDCs are primarily a mechanism for climate action, e s t r y many countries have used them to indicate other priorities

F 2.3 f o and ambitions for sustainable development (Pauw et al. o o ASSURE o d n d s AGRICULTURAL… o s e ti a c c f u u 2016). But because individual NDCs are very different in e ri d t t o y y r / p od scope and content to SDGs, and because the SDGs were Fo S ee ds still being negotiated when countries were developing their a nd ure cro ult ps agric Increase NDCs, the links between NDC activities and SDGs are vity producti not made explicit in the NDC texts. The NDC-SDG Con- nections tool aims to fill this gap, but doing so requires an Figure 2: Zooming in on individual SDGs – SDG 2: Zero assessment of the scale of local challenges, and an effort to How did we do this? HungerSDG target Inner circle pie size = Total Outer circle pie size = Relative Free shape = Amount of Climate action amount of climate actions that amount of climate actions to all climate actionslink for the chosen these with ambitions in national climate plans as well Source: NDC-SDG Connectionscontribute to(www.ndc-sdg.info) reach SDG target climate actions for the SDG target/s country for comparison as sustainable development strategies.

dimensions of sustainable development and aim to pro- 4. Sample insights from NDC-SDG Connections vide a social foundation for humanity while ensuring that The activities countries have committed to in order to meet human development takes place within the biophysical their climate ambitions go far beyond SDG 13 on climate Analysis SDGboundaries 2 across of all Earth. countries’ NDCs change. Our data show that many activities under the NDCs overlap with SDG ambitions, and that, to some extent, they The SDGs were arrived at through a unique global process, span across every SDG (see Figure 1). Type of Climate Actioncentring Percentageon an open of Quantifiable working groupTop 5 ofCountries member by Climate states andTop 5 Co-Benefits with consultationClimate with Actions a broad range Actionsof stakeholders. The textother SDGs NDC activities link to the following SDGs most extensively:

Mitigation 110was / 12% subsequently agreed on by all UN member states inAgriculture the • 785SDG / 88,5% 2: Zero Hunger DEU 120 General Assembly in September 2015.France Land use/management• 142SDG / 16% 7: Affordable and Clean Energy 785 / Adaptation 88,5% 300 93% KRO • SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation Water 110 / 12% No 50 Both 142While / 16% the 2030 Agenda is global in its ambition and uni- • SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities Spain Resilience 99 / 11% versally applicable, it is up to countriesUSA to decide how to • SDG 15: Life on Land 100 250 N/A 99 / 11% Yes No implement61 it, / 6.5% and how to821 /prioritize93% goals and targets, Forest • SDG17:88 / 10% Partnership for the Goals. depending on national needs and ambitions. They are free to set up their own national and subnational implementation This underlines how issues around agriculture, energy structures and plans. Countries are also encouraged to work and water are key for combating climate change as well in partnership to learn and assist each other. as for sustainable development. The same is true for SDG 11, which reflects the importance of urbanization both for SDG 2: Zero hungerThe official – Contributions follow-up and reviewfrom mechanism includes vol- achieving the 2030 Agenda and for the success of the Paris climate actionsuntary national reviews that are presented to the global High Agreement, with over 70% of all greenhouse gas emissions

SDG 2 is to “End hunger, achieveLevel food Political security and Forum,improved nutrition which and promotemeets annually underGET MORE the NDC aus CONTENT- AT THEgenerated by towns and cities. sustainable agriculture”. pices of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). NDC Explorer Eﬀects of climate change have severe impacts on agricultural production and hence on food Because the implementation of many NDCs is conditional production and food security.Although At the same time,the foodNDCs production are is aclosely major contributor linked to to countries’ imple- and depends on the provision of finance, there are also global greenhouse gas emissions. Only one other SDG has more NDC climate actions contributing to it. Most of mentationthese actions center of on the climate-smart Paris Agreement,agriculture, an approach which to was adopted in many pertinent connections between the implementation of developing the technical, Decemberpolicy and investment 2015, conditions they to achieve were sustainable first drafted before that date. The the Paris Agreement and SDG 17: Means of Implementation agricultural developmentsuccess for food security of under the climate Paris change. Agreement can be attributed to – and and Global Partnership, which, among other things, seeks to At the level of targets, SDGwill target depend2.4 (sustainable on agricultural – these production strategic systems documents. for mobilize financial resources for developing countries. resource protection and climate change resilience) was the most frequently addressed in NDC climate actions, while target 2.1 (ensure universal access to suﬀicient nutritious food) These connections emphasize the need for both partnership was the second most frequentlyThe cited.submitted Target 2.3 (double NDC agriculturals, representing productivity for 192 parties, go far and policy coherence between the two agendas. smallholders) is not addressed in any of the NDCs studied, illustrating the need for countries’ climate ambitionsbeyond to be complemented proposals with other to reducesustainable developmentgreenhouse gas emissions to strategies. mitigate climate change, also mentioning numerous ad- From a sustainability perspective, we might expect most

SDG 2 is very important foraptation climate action. measures Our analysis also as reveals well that as climate other actions activities that promote climate activities in NDCs to be linked with either the that focus on sustainable sustainableagricultural production development. also connect with improved Formally, water the NDCs submitted environmental or the economic SDGs. While our analysis management (SDG 6), land-use management and forestry (SDG 15) and, to a lesser extent, economic growth (SDG 8).before the adoption of the Paris Agreement were referred to supports this, not all environmental SDGs are equally as “intended nationally determined contributions”. Once the country has ratified the Paris Agreement, the intended NDC 1 http://unfccc.int/focus/ndc_registry/items/9433.php

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Copyright © 2017 Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE), Bonn. Impress & Privacy well reflected in NDC climate activities. For example, there al practices that increase productivity and production, that are four times fewer activities related to SDG 14: Life Be- help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adap- low Water (which focuses primarily on oceans and marine tation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding resources) than to SDG 15: Life on Land. This is surprising and other disasters and that progressively improve land and given that oceans are the single largest habitat on the planet soil quality”) is the most prioritized. and are inextricably linked to human survival, as well as playing a major role in climate. Themes and cross-SDG synergies Our assessment identifies which climate measuressupport Our analysis of NDC climate activities shows that they also the thesis that actions generate co-benefits across SDGs. connect with the social dimensions of the SDGs, but to a The analysis of cross-cutting themes in NDCs shows that lesser extent. For example, countries connect their climate there are many SDG-relevant issues mentioned in the NDCs ambitions to SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being, SDG 4: that relate to more than one SDG (see Figure 3). Quality Education, and SDG 5: Gender Equality. But beyond the five core thematic areas of agriculture, water, Several SDG themes (i.e. socio-economic sectoral catego- energy, industry and land use, there remains a lot of room ries) appear across numerous SDG-relevant NDC activities. for im-provement for NDCs to incorporate climate-related Some of these themes closely relate to a particular SDG, but social dimensions of sustainable development. as Figure 3 shows, they can also link with two or more SDGs. For example, agriculture as a theme connects SDG SDG targets and climate actions 2: Zero Hunger and SDG 15: Life on Land, but also SDG 6: Our fine-grained analysis enables us to go beyond assessing Clean water and Sanitation. general SDG coverage of NDCs to also investigate which concrete climate actions are incorporated in the NDCs and By revealing the links between these SDG themes, NDC- how they contribute to SDGs at the level of targets. SDG Connections shows how NDC activities can promote several SDGs at once. In that respect, SDG themes such as Figure 2 zooms in on SDG 2: Zero Hunger, and categorizes energy and agriculture are particularly relevant, but activi- climate actions according to their importance to the goal ties related to infrastructure, land use and finance also span (signified by thesize of the segment in the outer ring). For across several SDGs. NDC-SDG Connections can help to example, the figure shows that the biggest related priority identify the most important overlaps between NDCs and in the NDCs is climate-smart and sustainable agriculture, targets across the 17 SDGs, and pinpoint key ways in which followed by improved livestock resilience. climate action under the Paris Agreement can contribute to the 2030 Agenda. Parallel to this, our analysis of SDG 2 targets in the inner circle shows that target 2.4 (“By 2030, ensure sustainable It should be noted that the analysis in the tool only high- food production systems and implement resilient agricultur- lights synergies between SDGs and climate actions. It does

PARTNERSHIPS NO 17 FOR THE GOALS 1 POVERTY

PEACE AND ZERO JUSTICE HUNGER 16 Economic growth & development 2 Forests Monitoring & Review

LIFE ON GOOD HEALTH 15 LAND Land use & management 3 AND WELL-BEING

Ecosystems Water Resilience LIFE BELOW QUALITY 14 WATER EDUCATION Education Finance 4 Agriculture Community-based development Social inclusion Disaster risk reduction & Rural CLIMATE management GENDER 13 ACTION 5 EQUALITY Adaptive Capacity Energy Research & Development Resource RESPONSIBLE Cities CLEAN WATER Human rights 12 CONSUMTION 6 AND SANITATION AND PRODUCTION efficiency Good governance Infrastructure

AFFORDABLE AND Transport CLEAN ENERGY SUSTAINABLE CITIES Gender equality Housing & Buildings 7 11 AND COMMUNITIES Health Employment Coastal Protection DECENT WORK AND REDUCED 8 ECONOMIC GROWTH INEQUALITIES 10 INDUSTRY, INNOVATOIN 9 AND INFRASTRUCTURE Figure 3: SDG themes: socio-economic sectoral categories that appear across numerous SDG-relevant NDC activities Source: NDC-SDG Connections (www.ndc-sdg.info) Policy considerations • Policy-makers can use the NDC-SDG Connections tool to plan more coherent, coordinated implementation of the SDGs and climate action.

• Synergies between the SDGs and NDC climate actions provide opportunities for more ambitious national implementation of both agendas.

• As well as synergies, the NDC-SDG Connections tool also reveals where links between the SDGs and NDC activities are currently weak. Countries could strengthen these links in the next round of NDCs.

• While the NDC-SDG Connections tool reveals positive links between the 2030 Agenda and NDC commitments, trade-offs between the two also need to be taken into account when planning coordinated policy responses. not reveal trade-offs. Areas where SDG targets have the Development Goals. Working paper. World Resources most and least positive influenceo n climate action, and Institute, Washington, DC. https://www.wri.org/sites/ where efforts should be directed (or not), is an unexplored default/files/WRI_INDCs_v5.pdf area. Literature on SDG interactions (e.g. Nilsson et al. Pahuja, N. and Raj, A. (2017). SDG Footprint of Asian 2016; Weitz 2017; ICSU 2017) can help explore these NDCs: Exploring Synergies Between Domestic Policies and trade-offs in an empirical setting in order to identify and International Goals. Energy and Resources Institute, New anticipate them at an early stage in national development Delhi. http://www.ndcfootprints.org/pdf/asiareport_july.pdf plans and strategies. Pauw, P., Cassanmagnano, D., Mbeva, K., Hein, J., Guarín, A., et al. (2017). NDC Explorer. DOI:10.23661/ndc_ 5. Conclusion explorer_2017_2.0 The synergies revealed by the NDC-SDG Connections tool UNFCCC (2017). Catalysing the Implementation of Nationally underline the need for policy-makers to consider the SDGs Determined Contributions in the Context of the 2030 and climate action under the NDCs as linked, even integrat- Agenda through South-South Cooperation. UN Framework ed agendas; and to address them with coherent policies. Convention on Climate Change, Bonn, Germany. http:// www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/wp-content/ Taking into account SDG commitments can help coun- uploads/2017/05/Download-Report.pdf tries to ensure that climate actions promote wider social, Weitz, N., Carlsen, H., Nilsson, M. and Skånberg, K. (2017). economic and environmental ambitions. At the same time, Towards systemic and contextual priority setting for considering committed climate actions and SDG targets implementing the 2030 Agenda. Sustainability Science. together can help avoid duplication of effort and opportuni- 1–18. DOI:10.1007/s11625-017-0470-0 ties for more efficient budget allocation.

References Carraro, C. (2016). A bottom-up, non-cooperative approach to climate change control: assessment and comparison of nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Journal of Sustainable Development, 9(5). 175. DOI:10.5539/jsd. v9n5p175 Published by: ICSU (2017). A Guide to SDG Interactions: From Science to Stockholm Environment Institute Implementation. International Council for Science (ICSU), Linnégatan 87D, Box 24218 Paris. 104 51 Stockholm Mbeva, K. L. and Pauw, P. (2016). Self-Differentiation of Sweden Countries’ Responsibilities: Addressing Climate Change Tel: +46 8 30 80 44 through Intended Nationally Determined Contributions. Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik, Bonn. Nilsson, M., Griggs, D. and Visbeck, M. (2016). Policy: Map Author contact: the interactions between Sustainable Development Goals. Adis Dzebo Nature, 534(7607). 320–22. DOI:10.1038/534320a [email protected] Northrop, E., Biru, H., Lima, S., Buoye, M. and Song, R. Media contact: (2016). Examining the Alignment Between the Intended Tom Gill Nationally Determined Contributions and Sustainable [email protected]

This policy brief was written by Adis Dzebo1, Clara Brandi2, Hannah sei-international.org Janetschek2, Georgia Savvidou1, Kevin Adams1, Stephanie Chan1 and Claire Lambert2. 2017 Explore the NDC-SDG Connections at ndc-sdg.info 1 Stockholm Environment Institute Twitter: @SEIresearch, @SEIclimate 2 German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik