Long-term low-emission development strategies

Long-term low-emission development strategies, commonly abbreviated as LT-LEDS or long-term strategies (LTS), are voluntary national documents that Parties to the Paris Agreement are invited to formulate and communicate under Article 4.19. Unlike Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which set near-term mitigation targets on five-year cycles, LT-LEDS look toward mid-century, typically articulating how a country intends to align its economy with the Paris Agreement's temperature goals and, in many cases, reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.

The concept was formally embedded in the Paris Agreement (2015) and reinforced by Decision 1/CP.21, which invited Parties to communicate their strategies by 2020. The UNFCCC Secretariat hosts a public registry of submitted LT-LEDS. Early submitters included the United States, Canada, Mexico, France, and Germany, with many additional countries — including the United Kingdom, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and South Africa — submitting in subsequent years.

A typical LT-LEDS covers:

• Sectoral decarbonization pathways (power, transport, buildings, industry, agriculture, land use)
• Net-zero or low-emission targets, often for 2050 or a comparable horizon
• Just transition considerations, including labor and regional impacts
• Adaptation linkages and resilience planning
• Finance, technology, and capacity needs, especially for developing country Parties

LT-LEDS are intended to provide policy signals to investors and ministries, anchor shorter-term NDCs in a credible long-run trajectory, and surface trade-offs between development priorities and emissions reductions. They are not legally binding instruments, and their content, methodology, and ambition vary widely. Critics note inconsistency between LT-LEDS pledges and current NDCs, and gaps between stated 2050 ambitions and near-term policy.

For MUN delegates and researchers, LT-LEDS are useful primary sources for comparing national climate ambition, identifying sectoral assumptions (e.g., reliance on carbon dioxide removal or hydrogen), and assessing alignment with the IPCC's 1.5°C pathways.