Simply put, an NDC, or Nationally Determined Contribution, is a climate action plan to cut emissions and adapt to climate impacts. Each Party to the Paris Agreement is required to establish an NDC and update it every five years.

NDCs are where countries set targets for mitigating the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change and for adapting to climate impacts. The plans define how to reach the targets and elaborate systems to monitor and verify progress so it stays on track.

Since climate finance is key to implementing the plans, NDCs ideally also detail a financing strategy. UN SDG 13 covers the issues of climate change. A sustainable community is continually adjusting to meet its residents’ social and economic needs while preserving the environment’s ability to support it. A sustainable community uses its resources to meet current needs while ensuring adequate resources are available for future generations.

It seeks a better quality of life for all its residents while maintaining nature’s ability to function over time by minimizing waste, preventing pollution, promoting efficiency, and developing local resources to revitalize the local economy. SDG 16 deals with SCD.