Chilean President Michelle Bachelet launched Chile’s preparation process for its INDC at the UN Climate Summit in New York, in September 2014. The final INDC was officially submitted in September 2015 1 and contains an unconditional target of 30% reduction of GHG emissions-intensity of GDP compared to 2007 levels by 2030, complemented by a conditional target (35–45% reduction of GHG emissions-intensity of GDP compared to 2007 by 2030) and a separate forestry target.

Chile is considered a “first mover” as it was among the first developing countries to prepare and publish a draft version of the INDC. The INDC builds heavily on Chile’s Mitigation Action Plans and Scenarios Project (MAPS), both in terms of data and with regard to inter-ministerial coordination processes. A public consultation process, that started in December 2014 and ended in April 2015, improved ownership and provided input from different stakeholders and the general public to the INDC. The process included the web publication of the INDC proposal with a web-based mechanism for receiving feedback as well as seven regional workshops and several presentations to targeted audiences.

The case highlights the importance of efforts to build public awareness and to design specific climate change policies that go beyond existing instruments.