The Paris Agreement on Climate Change as a Development Agenda

About this course

Registrations open from 1 March to 30 April

Climate change is a cross-cutting development issue that affects every aspect of sustainable development and the entire 2030 Agenda. The Paris Agreement on Climate Change, along with the 2030 Agenda, including the Sustainable Development Goals, forms the most comprehensive blueprint to date for eliminating extreme poverty, reducing inequality, and protecting the planet. Together with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, these documents constitute an integral plan of action for people, planet, and prosperity, which requires all countries and stakeholders to act together. Sustainable development and climate action are deeply interconnected and interdependent. For example:

• Achieving zero-hunger is not possible without protecting food systems from the negative impacts of climate change;
• Cities and communities cannot be sustainable without adequate protection from extreme weather events;
• Ensuring children’s health is not possible without addressing air pollution and the increase in climate change-driven, vector-borne diseases;
• Economic development cannot be sustainable without reversing over-reliance on carbon-intensive energy sources.

Target audience

Development practitioners from the UN system, governments, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, civil society and academia.

Learning objectives

Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Explain key elements of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the 2030 Agenda and the role of climate action in the broader context of sustainable development;
• Identify and articulate the interrelations and interdependencies between the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the five critical dimensions of sustainable development: People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Partnership;
• Identify and articulate best practices to ensure coherence and mutual reinforcement between the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;
• Explain existing tools and instruments to mainstream sustainable development and climate action into national development policies and planning