The Commission’s Energy Union chief on Tuesday (27 June) urged all cities to join the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, an initiative which has gained more weight since Donald Trump announced the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on climate change.
We live in an urbanizing world. Up to two-thirds of the world’s population – some six billion people – may live in cities by 2050.
Cities have emerged as first responders to climate change because they experience the impacts of natural disasters firsthand and because they produce up to 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions.
Most of the progressive policies and significant challenges with regard to climate change are found in cities. A recent study by adelphi looked at ways of integrating urban actors in international climate governance to find more effective climate solutions. Kaj Fischer sums up the results.
The changing climate brings about more intense floods in cities in India and all around the world. It seems, however, that urban planning is still neglecting the growing risks. What are the biggest mistakes and how can we avoid them? An analysis by Dhanasree Jayaram.
Cities matter in international climate politics despite being non-state actors. How can their role be strengthened to take forward the world climate agenda? Gianna Gayle Amul and Maxim Shrestha make a case for more city climate diplomacy.
Integrated transboundary river basin management is necessary to secure urban water supply in the face of increasing environmental pressures. An adelphi event at the Blue Planet Forum 2015 saw a lively exchange on the benefits and challenges of international water cooperation. Lisa Kreutzmann sums up the results.
Cities need to be recognized, increasingly more so for their role in implementing necessary and timely action to address the impacts of climate change where it matters – at the local level. With majority of the global population living in urban environments, cities are major sources of carbon emissions as well as highly vulnerable to climate impacts. The involvement and participation of cities and urban localities are therefore important and required in terms of both climate adaptation and mitigation efforts.