In the run-up to the International Conference on Climate Action 2019, the V-LED project has published this brief synthesising key learnings from four years of project operations into actionable entry points that strengthen multi-level governance and support collaborative climate action.
The IPCC special report on global warming of 1.5°C reaffirms the urgency of the Paris Agreement. To avoid dangerous consequences, global greenhouse gas emissions must reach net-zero by 2050. While the international UNFCCC climate regime has managed to orchestrate national climate commitments, current national mitigation targets fall well short of achieving the low-carbon transformation.
Strengthening climate collaboration between multiple levels of government (vertical integration) and between sectors at the same governing level (horizontal alignment) is necessary to improve coherence and complementarity of climate policy and implementation. Collaborative climate action is fundamental to the transformative shifts needed to achieve the Paris Agreement’s ambition to limit global warming to 1.5°C. Drawing on practitioner insights and research conducted for the V-LED project, funded by the International Climate Initiative of the German Ministry of the Environment, a range of entry points are presented to support the collaborative design and implementation of ambitious climate actions. These entry points are grouped according to three priority areas for effective multilevel governance: Empower, Align and Equip.
Empower
- Involve subnational actors in national policy making processes to ensure buy-in, take account of existing actions and raise ambition
- Provide clear mandates and appropriate implementing authority to subnational governments
- Provide mandates and resources to coordinating entities to facilitate collaboration across sectors and levels
Equip
- Ensure access to finance for subnational implementation
- Strengthen local horizontal peer-to-peer learning and good practice exchange
- Support local networks of engaged citizens to hold governments accountable, and increase their motivation to act
Align
- Align climate response with development planning and budgeting at the subnational level
- Strengthen dialogical approaches to collaborative climate action
- Consider subnational regional governments as key actors to enable local climate action
Coordinating ambitious climate targets across government agencies and engaging subnational actors as key implementers and decision makers can unlock potential and drive transformation.
For greater detail about each of the entry points above, download the full synthesis report.
