Reflections on Climate Leadership and Mongolia’s Next Chapter
RealityTour: The Climate Reality Project's Leadership Corps Training in Mongolia (October, 2025)
Article on Linkedin, published on 9th October 2025
Having lived across Mongolia, Singapore, and Switzerland in what still feels like a relatively brief lifetime, I have been uniquely positioned to observe three distinct yet parallel realities. Each offers profound lessons the others could benefit from:
The adaptability and ecological wisdom of Mongolia’s deep connection to nature
The innovative progress achieved through harmony and decisive leadership in Singapore.
The democratic integrity and devotion to quality that define Switzerland.
In many ways, to me, the “ideal” society would be a thoughtful synthesis of these three worlds — grounded, visionary, and principled.
Mongolia in Focus
I am writing this article soon after helping organize the Climate Reality Project’s Leadership Corps Training in Mongolia, which brought together local change-makers and over 450 participants as part of this year’s RealityTour led by Al Gore and an incredibly dedicated team.
This RealityTour is significant. It marks ten years since the Paris Agreement and precedes COP30, a milestone that many hope will re-energize global cooperation on climate action. Yet optimism is tempered by reality. Across societies, we are witnessing a rise in eco-anxiety, resource-anxiety, and world-anxiety...
Everyone has experienced anxiety at some point in their life, and we all know that when it takes hold, our thinking tends to narrow and our focus shifts toward the immediate. Research in behavioral economics shows that when people experience stress or scarcity, they tend to narrow their focus to immediate needs — a phenomenon known as tunneling (Mullainathan & Shafir, 2013). Climate action, however, demands precisely the opposite: patience, systems thinking, and long-term collaboration.
For me, advancing sustainable change in Mongolia is both a professional responsibility and a personal mission. I often reflect on how my parents, cousins, and future children will live — and whether they will inherit the same landscapes that shaped me. My goal is straightforward: to help build a future where they can live differently, and better.
This article offers a roadmap from my personal perspective — summarizing the environmental challenges Mongolia faces, highlighting local innovators leading the way, and suggesting how individuals and institutions can take part in this transition.
The Climate Crossroads (Challenges)
Mongolia’s natural beauty, with its endless steppes, mountains, and deserts, is both its identity and its vulnerability. The climate crisis here is not abstract; it is visible, immediate, and deeply human.
Desertification has become one of our greatest threats. Over 70% of Mongolia’s land is now considered vulnerable, with the Gobi Desert expanding northward (UNCCD, 2023; The Diplomat, 2024). Overgrazing, deforestation, and unsustainable mining have stripped soils bare, forcing herders to migrate and accelerating land degradation.
Meanwhile, extreme winters, known as dzuds, are becoming more frequent. In early 2024 alone, over 7 million livestock were lost to extreme cold — an unimaginable loss for families whose lives depend on their animals (AP News, 2024; Yale E360, 2024). Climate volatility means that droughts weaken herds in summer, only for severe winters to follow.
At the same time, droughts and water scarcity are intensifying. Mongolia’s average temperature has risen by more than 2°C since the mid-20th century, while precipitation has decreased by roughly 7% (Asian Development Bank [ADB], 2021). More than one-quarter of the lakes on the Mongolian Plateau have dried up since the 1980s (Climate Reality Project, 2023).
And in Ulaanbaatar, urban pollution continues to shadow the skyline. Each winter, as coal stoves burn across the ger districts, smog thickens over the city, trapping particulate matter up to 30 times higher than WHO safe limits (World Health Organization [WHO], 2023). This is not only an environmental problem — it is a public health crisis (Breathe Mongolia, 2023).
These are not isolated challenges. Each feeds into the other: rural degradation drives migration to the city, which in turn strains infrastructure, deepens inequality, and compounds the pressure on ecosystems.
In 2025, the government initiated public discussion around a Draft Law on Climate Change, aiming to strengthen coordination across ministries, formalize emission reduction targets, and institutionalize science-based policy. The draft law, jointly developed by the Ministry of Economy and Development and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, with support from GIZ and other international partners, represents a significant step toward integrating climate priorities into Mongolia’s national development framework (Business Council of Mongolia, 2025).
Yet amid these overlapping challenges, Mongolia’s response has not been resignation but resilience building. Across the country, new movements and leaders are shaping solutions grounded in local wisdom and innovation.
The Changemakers Rising (Solutions)
Over the past decade, a new generation of innovators, activists, and organizations has begun to shape a different future:
Breathe Mongolia – Clean Air Coalition is one of the most visible examples. A youth-led movement of scientists, journalists, and community leaders, it combines advocacy, education, and open data to fight air pollution (Breathe Mongolia, 2023).
URECA LLC is among the leading examples. A pioneering climate-tech company based in Ulaanbaatar, URECA develops digital platforms that enable individuals and businesses to participate in carbon offset projects across Mongolia (Mongolian Economy, 2021)
Zorig Foundation, while best known for civic education and governance, has empowered a generation of young leaders who integrate sustainability into their work. By connecting governance, ethics, and climate awareness, they nurture a new kind of civic responsibility.
Mongol Ecology Center focuses on ecosystem protection, conservation, and environmental education, emphasizing the role of local communities as custodians of natural resources.
Steps Without Borders (Хил Хязгааргүй Алхам NGO) plays a critical role in advancing environmental justice, mining governance, and community rights. The organization has helped establish Participatory Environmental Monitoring Committees in regions such as Bayanjargalan, Airag, and Dalanjargalan, enabling herders, local authorities, and mining companies to jointly monitor environmental impacts (UNDP, 2024).
Emerging organizations like Green Dot Climate, Hunu, and the New Nomad Institute are blending environmental innovation, cultural heritage, and social entrepreneurship to redefine what sustainable development means in the Mongolian context.
Each of these efforts reflects a shared truth: real change in Mongolia will not come solely from government or foreign funding, but from empowered local actors working from within.
Building the Future
So what can individuals, professionals, and institutions do to be part of this transformation?
First, engage in global and national climate platforms. Follow Mongolia’s commitments under the Paris Agreement, study our Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and use spaces like COP30 to amplify Mongolian perspectives.
Second, invest in local changemakers. Support grassroots innovators with funding, mentoring, and visibility. Even modest contributions can create lasting impact if they help local organizations scale their efforts or share their stories. Collaboration does not always require financial resources — sometimes, it’s simply about connecting the right people.
Third, learn to observe the system. Tools such as the Iceberg Model and Theory U (Scharmer, 2018) can help us look beyond visible symptoms to identify the deeper mental models shaping them. When we understand the system, we can transform it rather than merely react to it.
Individual and institutional action is essential, but for true transformation to last, it must be supported by an enabling governance environment.
Mongolia’s Democratic Advantage
Lasting climate progress depends not only on innovation or technology, but on the systems of governance that enable transparency, accountability, and collective ownership.
Mongolia’s greatest asset, in my view is its young democracy.
Yes, the country faces governance challenges and a heavy reliance on coal. Yet Mongolia also has something rare in the region: a political culture where citizens can speak, question, and mobilize (Freedom House, 2024). That space — however imperfect — is the foundation for inclusive and durable climate action.
Democracy gives us the freedom to experiment, to test ideas, and to bring diverse voices into national policy. If we can strengthen that participatory fabric, ensuring that people see their voices reflected in decisions, then climate action becomes not just a necessity, but a democratic success story.
This potential for democratic climate leadership is also reflected on the international stage. In 2026, Mongolia will host COP17 under the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Hosting COP17 is more than symbolic, it positions Mongolia as a bridge between developed and developing nations, demonstrating how a young democracy and climate leadership can lead global environmental diplomacy while addressing its own ecological challenges.
In many ways, our environmental future and our democratic future are one and the same — each depends on the other to thrive.
A Closing Reflection
Mongolia stands at a historic threshold. The challenges are immense and complex, but so is the potential. Ours is a country with deep ecological wisdom, an engaged youth population, and the democratic room to innovate. The path now and forward will not be easy. But if we can combine our tradition of resilience with systems thinking, collaboration, and accountable leadership, then Mongolia can show the world that even in the harshest climates — hope can grow.
Perhaps the next chapter for Mongolia and for the world lies in learning from those three worlds once more: grounding progress in nature, leading with vision, and building trust through democracy.
Voilà! My humble take on Mongolia’s moment of transformation. If you’ve read this far, (write to me, you deserve a cookie or a coffee) thank you for taking the time. 😊
Khulan (Amarsaikhan) Berger
Founder & Presdent, Our Impact Mongolia | Director of Development, Climate Bridges | Climate Reality Leader trained in Rome 2024 | Board Member, Educators Lab | Advisory Board Member, Peregrine Global | Executive DBA Candidate
References / Sources
Asian Development Bank (ADB). (2021). Climate Risk Country Profile: Mongolia.
Business Council of Mongolia. (2025). Draft Climate Change Law Overview.
Climate Reality Project. (2025, July 25). How the Climate Crisis is Impacting Mongolia. The Climate Reality Project
COP17 in Mongolia – UNCCD. (2025, February 21). Mongolia to host next UN conference on sustainable land management. unccd.int
Desertification and Land Degradation (NEASPEC). (2024). Overview of DLD in Northeast Asia. neaspec.org
Government of Mongolia. (2025, May 30). Mongolia to host UNCCD COP17 in August 2026. gov.mn
Han, J., Dai, H., Gu, Z. (2021). Sandstorms and desertification in Mongolia: a review. Environmental Chemistry Letters. PMC
International Water Management Institute (IWMI). IWMI at COP17 UNCCD. iwmi.org
Mongolian Economy. (2021). URECA and the Future of Carbon Markets.
Montsame. (2025). Mongolia to Host COP17 on August 17-28, 2026. montsame.mn
Mongolia UN. (2025, April 21). Consultative Meeting of Development Partners Held in Preparation for COP17. mongolia.un.org
Preserving Rangelands for People and Climate: Lessons from Mongolia. (2021). World Bank / IEG blog. ieg.worldbankgroup.org
Quantitative Analysis of Land Degradation in Mongolia. (2024). Journal of Resources and Ecology. jorae.cn
UNCCD COP17 – SDG Knowledge Hub. COP17 is expected to foster collaboration… SDG Knowledge Hub
UNDP Mongolia. (2025, April 17). Reviving the Steppe: Mongolia’s Living Laboratory for Combating Desertification. UNDP
UNDP Mongolia. (2024, November 28). Combating Desertification in Mongolia’s Gobi: Story of Resilience & Restoration. UNDP
UPI. (2025, February 27). Mongolia to host international conference to fight desertification. Upi
World Health Organization (WHO). Air Pollution and Health: Mongolia Country Data.
Yale Environment 360. (2025). How Climate Change Is Fueling Mongolia’s Dzud Crisis.
The Diplomat. (2024, May 31). Mongolia’s Fight Against Desertification and Land Degradation. The Diplomat
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