Date: October 31, 2025
This document presents the Rights-Based NDC Model, a framework designed to integrate the rights and contributions of Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendant Peoples, and local communities into the design and implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. NDCs are the central policy instruments through which countries communicate their climate commitments—defining national goals, mitigation and adaptation strategies, and financial needs. With the next NDC update cycle due ahead of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, this is a pivotal moment for rights-based organizations to advocate for the incorporation of human rights principles and community-led approaches into national climate frameworks.
In addition to presenting the Rights-Based NDC Model, we also identify key entry points within NDCs for advancing community-centered climate action—particularly within mitigation (Agriculture, Forestry, and Other Land Use—AFOLU), adaptation, just transition, gender and youth inclusion, and accountability components. Embedding community rights within these areas strengthens both the effectiveness and equity of national climate policies.
The Rights-Based NDC Model aims to give Indigenous, Afro-descendant, and local community movements tools to pressure their countries to move beyond symbolic inclusion toward actionable, rights-based commitments that deliver measurable results on the ground, reinforcing climate ambition while advancing social justice and collective well-being.
https://doi.org/10.53892/FJHJ2335