NDC Equity Tracker

With support from Earth Rising, the youth-led group Care About Climate (CAC) recently completed a valuable project, the NDC Equity Tracker – a publicly-accessible database that provides a platform for international youth to critically engage with their countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions. This project aims to bridge the gap between local action and international policy, elevating frequently underrepresented voices.

The CAC team completed analyses of 27 countries’ NDCs, representing more than 45% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Each analysis focuses on emissions reductions, gender justice, intergenerational equity, and civil society participation, in addition to offering concrete recommendations for how countries can improve their commitments. Importantly, the platform also provides information and tools for the general public to use in interactions with their own governments.

CAC also led various advocacy initiatives over the course of this project, notably at COP26 in Edinburgh in October and November 2021. CAC sent an international youth delegation to participate in the conference; the delegates negotiated with officials from the US, Chile, and Egypt and collaborated with other youth advocacy groups. They also hosted two events at the conference: a panel titled “Ambition on Gender & Climate Action: Global Young Feminists on Gender in the NDCs,” as well as a virtual exhibit on the NDC Equity Tracker.

The CAC team has found it “extremely rewarding to get to work with young people from 27 countries with a shared vision for just climate policy,” and we are excited to see all of their hard work bearing fruit!