Introducing the COP26 Climate Change Conference #Viz4ClimateAction challenge

Tableau Public has teamed up with TheSDGVizProject, short for Sustainable Development Goals, to promote a month-long challenge looking at the effects of the climate crisis. #Viz4ClimateAction is a global data visualization challenge centered around the four goals of the upcoming COP26 Climate Change Conference: Mitigation, Adaptation, Finance, and Collaboration.

At Tableau, our mission is to help people see and understand data. Currently, there’s no greater use of data than to communicate the urgency of climate action. With the #Viz4ClimateAction challenge we want to show the power of vizzes to communicate the urgency of the climate crisis, building on the amazing work that TheSDGVizProject has done to explore and act on the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

COP26 is widely recognized as the most significant global climate event since the 2015 Paris Agreement. In November (1 - 12), over 190 countries will come together in Glasgow, Scotland with the goal of accelerating action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The Paris Agreement, signed by 196 parties at the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference in Paris was the first time a global agreement was reached to work together to limit temperature rises to less than 2 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial levels (with a more ambitious goal of 1.5 degrees), to adapt and help others to adapt to a changing climate, and to mobilize the finances necessary to meet the goals of the agreement.

Every five years, each country has agreed to make adjustments and bring forth a plan that represents the highest level of ambition that they are willing to adhere to. This year’s Conference comes at a crucial time, as recent reports show that we are not on track to meet those goals, and much more ambitious plans are needed, especially from developed nations.

In July, our parent company Salesforce announced that it will be a Partner Sponsor at COP26. The sponsorship is part of the company’s broader commitment to continue to drive policy leadership, enable customers and community partners to participate in and mobilize the climate action movement, and demonstrate the importance of digital transformation to help address climate change and reach net zero. You can read more about the Salesforce sponsorship here.

To take part in the challenge publish a relevant viz to Tableau Public with the #Viz4ClimateAction hashtag and submit an entry form at #TheSDGVizProject website before 10 October. Vizzes which meet the challenge criteria - available here - may be featured in a gallery on our web site and #TheSDGVizProject website. The top three vizzes, selected by Andy Cotgreave, Technical Evangelist at Tableau and Clayton Aldern, data journalist at Grist, will each receive a $100 gift card to the Tableau Store, and will be highlighted in upcoming blog posts from us and #TheSDGVizProject.

Curious to see what others have already created? Search Tableau Public using #Viz4ClimateAction.

We can’t wait to see all of your submissions. And if you see a viz with the hashtag #Viz4ClimateAction, please share it and help us spread the word.