SLOCAT launches campaign in collaboration with partners to raise transport ambition in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)

Although the COP26 UN Conference on Climate Change – set to take place in Glasgow in November under the presidency of the UK government – has been postponed to 2021 due to COVID-19, the need for more ambitious climate action has never been more urgent. In the framework of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, countries are still due to submit their updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) this year – the pathways required under the Paris Agreement to identify concrete national efforts to maintain global temperature rise below 1.5ºC. The level of ambition for sustainable, low carbon transport must be drastically increased in this new round of NDCs. That is why the SLOCAT Partnership, in collaboration with GIZ (German Development Agency), the World Resources Institute (WRI), and the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), with contributions from: Alstom, the Climate Group, the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI), the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), the International Union of Railways (UIC), and Walk 21, have developed ten key recommendations for raising transport ambition in countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how critically we rely on transport for everything we do – from accessing jobs and essential services such as healthcare and education, to delivering food and other goods, and supporting overall equitable economic development.

Yet, while transport is essential to a thriving society, the current paradigm – in which transport is primarily powered by fossil fuels – is coming at a dire cost to people and our planet. The transport sector is now the fastest-growing source of emissions in the world. We cannot continue on this unsustainable path of moving people and goods at the expense of the planetary health on which our civilisation depends.

Ambitious, transformative action in transport is needed now to tackle climate change and inequity for the sake of current and future generations. Sustainable, low carbon transport will be the engine of global socio-economic recovery. It increases equitable access to jobs and other socio-economic opportunities for people of all ages and abilities. It powers a just transition to green jobs in a circular economy. It reduces climate impacts. It improves air quality and benefits public health. It reduces congestion, fuel imports and infrastructure costs. It powers livelihoods in urban and rural areas, and does so within the carrying capacity of Earth’s ecosystems. 

Our aim with these practical NDCs recommendations is to inspire and support policymakers at all levels of government and other key stakeholders as they work towards the next generation of NDCs. The recommendations provide actionable and concise pathways to reduce the growing negative environmental, social, and economic impacts of transport business as usual. Each recommendation is supported by case studies and resources

Stay tuned to SLOCAT’s Twitter feed, Facebook page, and NDC page over the next several weeks, where we will take a deeper look at each of the recommendations and provide case studies and resources.

Please help us spread the word #TransportinNDCs #enroutetoCOP26 and contact us (emily.hosek@slocatpartnership.org) if your organisation would like to endorse this campaign! 

Let’s work in partnership to use this next generation of NDCs to shift to sustainable, low carbon transport for good, and create new pathways for an equitable, climate-friendly and resilient present and future!