Locking Carbon in Wetlands: Enhancing Climate Action by Including Wetlands in NDCs

With the focus on enhancing climate ambition in the run-up to Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) submissions, a new report by the Alliance for Global Water Adaptation and Wetlands International demonstrates the value of wetlands as a way to achieve climate mitigation targets, while unlocking biodiversity and adaptation benefits.

Wetlands are facing the most rapid decline of all ecosystems. At the same time, they offer vast and largely untapped carbon storage potential. By working to safeguard and restore wetlands, countries can both fight the adverse effects of climate change and ensure benefits to human livelihoods and biodiversity.

This report, Locking Carbon in Wetlands: Enhancing Climate Action by Including Wetlands in NDCs, is written for policymakers and national climate planners and shares the science behind the integral role of wetlands within the global carbon cycle. Despite this, wetlands have not featured prominently within early climate commitments. With wetlands found in nearly every country, the report demonstrates how countries can tap into the undervalued potential of their own wetland ecosystems.