Summary For Urban Policymakers
What the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C means for cities.
What the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C means for cities.
The science is clear: we have to act now to prevent catastrophic climate change…and cities offer a unique opportunity to limit global temperature rise. These are some of the key findings of the Summary for Urban Policymakers of the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5 ° C, launched at the COP24 climate negotiations in Poland.
The battle against climate change can only be won with cities. But, cities cannot do it alone. They are often limited by a lack of access to the resources required to deliver climate action. Multilevel integration can play a key role in raising national ambitions and promoting innovation and action at the local level. This includes vertically integrating investment plans of local authorities into national climate investment plans to address the urban finance gap.
Climate action has taken on a new urgency, and people across the world and across sectors are ready to “Take Ambition to the Next Level.” This was especially clear at the Global Climate Action Summit held in San Francisco, September 2018. Throughout this impactful event, we aimed to shine a spotlight on the contributions of city leaders and announced new initiatives and tools to support cities’ efforts to adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate change, fulfilling their commitments and achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement.
With the Paris Agreement coming into force, and the associated commitment of 197 nations around the world, including the European Union, to limit global warming to well below 2o C, governments are beginning to understand the urgency of the climate change crisis.
The Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy announced today a new partnership with Google and Bloomberg Philanthropies. The partnership channels Google’s proprietary data and technological capabilities through GCoM’s global network of cities and city networks together with Bloomberg Philanthropies’ leadership on cities and climate change to drive global action at the local level. These efforts will provide cities with critical information about their environmental data and develop new tools that will empower cities to access new city-level climate data, yield significant cost and time savings, and drive ambition to meet the Paris Agreement.
By Joshua S Hill A new pilot initiative, the Global Climate City Challenge, will seek to address technical preparation and financing for cities across the world to strengthen investment in green projects and programs essential to improving regional resilience to climate change. The new initiative was launched on the sidelines of the Global Climate Action … read more