Climate Change

Issue

Overview

Why local and regional governments are key players

Long Track Record of Local Innovation and International Collaboration Put Local and Regional Authorities in Unique Position to Tackle Causes and Consequences of Climate Change

UCLG has been constantly involved in climate change negotiations and the organization has raised awareness on the impact of climate change on cities and their inhabitants, and promoted the implementation of a sustainability agenda to prevent its impact around the world.

Milestones:

2018 - Local elected leaders will meet at COP 24 in Katowice, Poland Local elected leaders will meet at COP 24 in Katowice, Poland to continuing climate negotiations in the spirit of the Paris Agreement. Scientists, policy makers, urban practitioners and local and regional government networks gathered at the IPCC Cities and Climate Change Science Conference in Edmonton, Canada, from 5-7 March to inspire the next frontier of research focused on the science of cities and climate change. + INFO

2017- UCLG, as the largest network of local and regional governments, continues to support the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy launched in January 2017. This coalition, resulting from the merger of Compact of Mayors and European Covenant of Mayors, is the largest initiative for the reduction of local greenhouse gas emissions, which aims to enhance resilience to climate change and track its progress. Following recommendation by the Policy Council on Resilience, UCLG members gathered in Hangzhou at the World Council, welcomed the initiative presented by Ronan Dantec to celebrate the One Planet Summit on the occasion of the second anniversary of the Paris Agreement, and to highlight the need to enhance commitments from all actors, as well to pay particular attention to the financing of initiatives to fight Climate Change.

2016 - With the entry into force of the Paris Climate Agreement, UCLG actively contributed to the Climate Summit for Local and Regional Leaders, held in the presence of the major regional and international networks of cities and local and regional authorities in the framework of COP 22 in Morocco. Its outcome document, the Marrakech Roadmap for Action, calls for a global action framework towards localizing climate finance. +INFO

2015 - Thousands of mayors and local leaders came together in Paris to strengthen the voices of local and regional governments at the COP 21. Local and regional leaders emphasized the need to link climate action to the 2030 and Habitat III Agendas, and reaffirmed the importance of citizen participation and inclusive social policies to ensure the effective implementation of the sustainability agenda in its broadest sense. Through the Paris Agreement, the UNFCCC Parties have recognized that “adaptation is a global challenge faced by all with local, subnational, national, regional and international dimensions". +INFO

2014 - Launched at the UN Climate Summit, the Compact of Mayors is the largest cities initiative for combating climate change. It commits signatories to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, open targets and plans to the public and provide annual progress reports.- +INFO

2013 - To scale up action towards climate change, the World Mayors Summit on Climate Change in Nantes adopted the Nantes Declaration of Mayors and Subnational Leaders on Climate Change—reaffirming engagement from local and regional governments towards global climate issues and access to local finance. +INFO

2010 - To better track climate actions, local governments launched the carbon Cities Climate Registry (cCCR). This global reporting platform lets cities and local governments display their capacity and potential for reducing climate change risks. +INFO

2010 - By signing the Global Cities Covenant on Climate or “Mexico City Pact,” local leaders showed their commitment to comprehensive strategies that can mitigate emissions and help cities adapt to climate change. +INFO

2009 - To strengthen the UCLG Climate Negotiation Group, the UCLG World Council in Guangzhou successfully brought together a select team of cities and regions.

2007 - To design and implement a strong global climate group for our post-Kyoto world, local and regional governments adopted the Local Government Climate Roadmap. +INFO

Key content

COP 24 and Cities IPCC Conference (2018)

Local elected leaders will meet at COP 24 in Katowice, Poland Local elected leaders will meet at COP 24 in Katowice, Poland to continuing climate negotiations in the spirit of the Paris Agreement.

Scientists, policy makers, urban practitioners and local and regional government networks gathered at the IPCC Cities and Climate Change Science Conference in Edmonton, Canada, from 5-7 March to inspire the next frontier of research focused on the science of cities and climate change. Major local and regional government networks (UCLG, C40 and ICLEI) together with CitiesIPCC partners released a joint statement committing to promote and implement the global research agenda on cities and climate change. The conference was served to provide a space for dialogue and assess the state of academic and practice-based knowledge related to cities and climate change, and to establish a global research agenda based on the joint identification of key gaps by the academic, practitioner and urban policy-making communities.

COP 23, Climate Chance Summit and Global Covenant of Mayors (2017)

UCLG sent a strong delegation to COP23 in Bonn of around 60 local and regional leaders to advocate for the role of local and territorial action in combatting climate change. The highlight of the conference for our constituency was the Climate Summit of Local and Regional Leaders. The Summit was a jumping off point for key initiatives and partnerships that support implementation of the Paris Agreement, demonstrating that when cities, regions, businesses, communities and all levels of government join forces, it makes climate action stronger and more effective.

The Climate Chance Summit in Agadir brought together all UNFCCC recognized non-state actors involved in the fight against climate change and resulted in the Agadir Declaration of Climate Actors reaffirmed non-state actors’ commitment to Paris Agreement beyond eventual national government decisions.

- Through city driven initiatives such as the Global Covenant of Mayors, UCLG continues to drive forward climate action at the local level and supports local leaders on their way towards a low carbon and more resilient future. Launched in January 2017 the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM) formally brings together the Compact of Mayors and the EU Covenant of Mayors – the world’s two primary initiatives for cities and local governments – to create the largest and first-of-its-kind global coalition of cities and local governments leading in the fight against climate change.

- Following recommendation by the Policy Council on Resilience, UCLG members gathered in Hangzhou at the World Council, welcomed the initiative presented by Ronan Dantec to celebrate the One Planet Summit on the occasion of the second anniversary of the Paris Agreement, and to highlight the need to enhance commitments from all actors, as well to pay particular attention to the financing of initiatives to fight Climate Change.

COP 22: Marrakech Roadmap for Action (7-18 November 2006)

With the entry into force of the Paris Climate Agreement, UCLG actively contributed to the Climate Summit for Local and Regional Leaders, held in the presence of the major regional and international networks of cities and local and regional authorities in the framework of COP 22 in Morocco. Its outcome document, the Marrakech Roadmap for Action, calls for a global action framework towards localizing climate finance.

COP 21 Paris, (30 Novembre - 11 December 2015)

The Role of Local and Regional Governments at COP21

Thousands of mayors and local leaders came together in Paris to strengthen the voices of local and regional governments. In addition to the official Local and Regional Leaders Delegation to COP21, highlights included a Climate Summit for Local Leaders, meetings of the UCLG World Council and Executive Bureau, a session on Women’s Leadership and Development, and a range of parallel events organized by UCLG Committees, members and partners of the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments.

The outcome document of the COP 21, the Paris Agreement, approved by the Parties, states that global warming should be limited to below 2 degrees Celsius, but strives to pursue a 1.5-degree target. Through this Agreement, the UNFCCC Parties have recognized that “adaptation is a global challenge faced by all with local, subnational, national, regional and international dimensions, and that it is a key component of and makes a contribution to the long-term global response to climate change to protect people, livelihoods and ecosystems.”

Mobilization of local and regional leaders at COP 21
During the CO P21, local and regional leaders emphasized the need to link climate action to the 2030 and Habitat III Agendas, and reaffirmed the importance of citizen participation and inclusive social policies to ensure the effective implementation of the sustainability agenda in its broadest sense. For this reason, the inclusion in the preface of a clear reference to the Agenda 2030 was welcomed.
The mobilization of local governments during the COP 21 illustrated the huge potential of the constituency to implement practical solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change, as well as to foster sustainable development with a strong social dimension, based on citizen participation.
Highlights of this mobilization during the COP 21 included the announcement of over 400 cities joining the Compact of Mayors, the follow-up of the World Summit of Cities and Territories, the Cities and Regions pavilion, and the celebrations during the UNFCCC Action Day on 5 December, advocating for a real space for dialogue and joint work between all levels of government and involving all relevant stakeholders.; In addition, joint positions were adopted by the local and regional governments’ constituency with the following outcomes:
- The Paris City Hall Declaration
- Lima-Paris Action Agenda (LPAA)
- The Paris pledge for action

The World Summit on Climate and Territories, Lyon (01-02 July 2015)

In July 2015, civil society representatives and local and regional governments from around the world met in Lyon to prepare for COP21. To raise the profile of non-state actors, the Summit highlighted the importance of a territorial approach for dealing with both climate change and sustainability in the run-up to the Climate Summit in Paris. The result? The creation of the Lyon Declaration—an unprecedented declaration of support by sub-national governments and civil society for immediate action on climate change.

Warsaw Negotiations (11-22 November 2013)

The agreement found in Warsaw in the application text of the Durban Protocol led to the commitment proposal of each country to reduce emission for the first trimester of 2015, without defining precise constraints.

Among the substantial advances, the importance of the role of cities and sub-national authorities was, for the first time in the history of the conference, highlighted in an operational chapter on reinforcing their capacity for action, with a paragraph in the text on application of the Durban Protocol.

By integrating, during the high-level segment, the organization of an event on local government, opened by the UN Secretary General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, this COP will be considered by the local authority associations mobilised in this negotiations, an important moment of recognition of the key roles of cities and regions in reducing global greenhouse gas emissions and in adapting their territories.

This step forward should be confirmed during the Paris 2015 conference, in particular in the mobilization of financing. Nevertheless, if the Warsaw compromises open the way to Paris, a great number of difficulties still lay down, namely the lack of commitment on financing from industrialized countries, the systematic opposition from the new Australian government, the withdrawal of Japan, and strong reservations from the big emerging countries to commit to their own emission reduction.

Doha Negotiations (22 November 2012 - 8 December 2012)

The conclusions of Doha talks have mainly ensured the continuity of the process and existing commitments through the “Doha climate Gateway”:

- The Kyoto Protocol will be extended for eight years, to bridge the gap between end of the first phase (2012) and previewed implementation of the 2015 agreement by 2020.
- A work program on compensation of loss and damage has been agreed on and will start immediately to establish institutional arrangement, such as an international mechanism, at COP19.
- The drafting of a new universal climate agreement by 2015 has been set in motion.

Regretfully, the outcomes lack references to local climate action despite the recent formal acknowledgement they have obtain in the Conference on Biodiversity and in Rio+20 outcomes and the very strong statements delivered by countries including US, EU, Brazil, Mexico and Indonesia at numerous sessions before and during the Conference.

UCLG at the Durban negotiations (27 November 2011-9 December 2011)

In the framework of the Climate change negotiations taking place in Durban from 28 November to 9 December, on eve of the end of the first phase of the Kyoto Protocol, Local and regional authorities are meeting and demonstrating their key role in emission reduction.

The UCLG negotiation group, led by Nantes will convey local and regional governments voice in these negotiation jointly with the sisters’ organizations being part of the Local Government and Municipal Authorities (LGMA) constituency, carrying on with the Local governments’ roadmap launched in Bali in 2007. This successful advocacy work has reinforced our role in the negotiation process, with the recognition of local governments as governmental stakeholders in the Cancun agreements, adopted in December 2010, and has opened access to international financing mechanisms for cities through the city wideapproach programme (see intervention of the LGMA in the opening plenary of CMP7 delivered by Yoro Ba, Deputy Mayor of Dakar, Senegal and representative of United Cities and Local Governments, November 30th, 2011).

SALGA, the South African cities network, Ethekwini municipality, the national department of environmental affairs and ICLEI with the support of WMSCC and UCLG are holding the Durban Convention for local authorities on the 2 to 4 December in Durban. Local elected representatives from Africa and worldwide and partners are invited to contribute to two days of debates and workshops on adaptation and mitigation issues, disaster risk reduction and global advocacy of local and regional governments in the climate negotiation and further in the Rio+20 process.

Bonn negotiations (6-17 June 2011)

Following the first round of negotiations held in Bangkok in preparation of the Conference on Climate Change in Durban -COP17-, two weeks of negotiations are taking place in Bonn from 6 to 17 June. UCLG, represented by the City of Nantes and by the City of Dakar, and counting with the presence of its Co-President Muchadeyi Masunda, Mayor of Harare (Zimbabwe), advocated for the inclusion of local authorities in the definition of national plans and international instruments to address and finance climate change.

UCLG further participates in a special workshop on enhanced engagement of the stakeholders in the climate negotiations, gathering Parties and stakeholders and to the organisation of a joint side-event with ICLEI and WMCCC addressing the progress of the Mexico Pact and the Carbon registry. Co-President Masunda presented the work of UCLG in climate negotiations and local governments actions. Ronan Dantec, Deputy Mayor of Nantes and UCLG spokesperson raised the need to access finance and launch financiable projects, and in particular mitigations projects in the framework of the Clean Development Mechanisms. Eventually, Yoro Ba, Deputy Mayor of Dakar and UCLG climate delegation member presented the experience of Dakar as a coastal city from the developping world: climate change impacts, needs and difficulties of the city.

Read the speech of Yoro Ba, Deputy Mayor of Dakar
Read the speech of Ronan Dantec, Deputy Mayor of Nantes
Read the speech of David Cadman, President of ICLEI
Read the key demands on public participation

In the framework of the Second World Congress on Cities and Adaptation to Climate Change (Resilient Cities 2011) that takes place before the negotiations in Bonn, the Forum of the Mayors on Adaptation is being held where UCLG is represented by its Co-President, Muchadeyi Masunda, and the UCLG Climate Negotiation Group, composed of Ronan Dantec, Deputy Mayor of Nantes and Yoro Baa, Deputy Mayor of Dakar. Co-President Masunda spoke at the Closing session on behalf of UCLG, explaining the role of the World Organisation in the negotiations on climate.

A gathering is also scheduled with the City of Durban and the Association of Local Authorities of South Africa (SALGA) in order to plan any mobilization activities for local governments in view of the COP 17, taking place in Durban in December.

Bangkok negotiations (3-8 April 2011)

Pursuant to Cancun agreements adopted last December 2010, Parties gathered in UN offices in Bangkok from 3 to 8 April 2011 for the first climate change negotiation round towards COP17.

UCLG climate negotiation group, through the World Secretariat and the City of Nantes, ensured local authorities participation and visibility in this round of negotiation, giving opportunities to raise our voice on local and regional local authorities’ main concerns, and in particular on the three following topics:

- Financial and technological mechanisms definition and implementation

- Developments of measurable, reportable and verifiable (MRV) mechanisms for climate actions and how to ensure coherence between the Carbonn registry designed for cities and already adopted by 179 of them worldwide, and the MRV mechanisms to be developed within the UNFCCC

- Empowerment of the stakeholders engaged in the process and particularly the differentiation of the role of local authorities as "governmental stakeholders", based on the text of the LCA adopted as part of Cancun agreements.

At the end of a week of negotiations, UCLG has expressed its worries on the difficulties that rose up, which led to great difficulties to adopt the agenda of work for the Convention working group. Furthermore, some major developed countries renewed their position not to commit to the second phase of the Kyoto Protocol. We hope Parties will come back to the positive spirit that lead to Cancun agreements and build on those to attain an equitable, balanced and firm agreement in Durban at the end of the year.

In preparation of this week of negotiation, the Mexican Presidency had organised a meeting with Parties and stakeholders in Mexico City on 22 March, where local authorities were represented. In the Conclusions of the Mexican dialogue, a specific recommendation is made to Parties to recognise local governments as essential actors in operating climate change actions.

Intervention of the Local Governments and Municipal Authorities Constituency at the Opening Plenary of AWG-LCA (non delivered due to suspension of session)
Intervention of the Local Governments and Municipal Authorities Constituency at the Opening Plenary of AWG-KP
Intervention of the Local Governments and Municipal Authorities Constituency at the Closing of the Technology Mechanisms Workshop

Outcomes of the COP 16: Cancun Agreements (29 November-10 December 2010)

Recognition of Local Governments in Cancun Agreements
If the Cancun Conference has shown the common political will of all the Parties to save the negotiation process under the UNFCCC and has come to some important decisions, it has also contributed to establish a clear recognition of the cities, local and subnational governments.
Mexican Presidency has played a strong and supportive role in this lobbying, that UCLG, ICLEI and other sisters’ organizations, being part of the climate negotiation process, have carried in the framework of the Local Climate Roadmap since Poznan in 2008.
Cancun Agreements: a step forward
Present during the two weeks of UN Climate negotiations in the framework of the COP 16, local governments welcome the progress and the commitments taken by the Parties. After a not very promising start, important achievements for local governments have been reached in Cancun: for the first time ever in UN climate documents, local governments are officially recognised as "governmental stakeholders", which strengthen their role in fighting climate change.
The Parties faced a real challenge after the critics that had received the outcomes of Copenhagen in December 2009 (COP 15): the Copenhagen Accord. The Mexican Presidency, host of the COP 16, had work hard all year long to rebuild trust between Parties but also to reinforce the place and role of the different stakeholders in the negotiation process.

The efforts of the Mexican Presidency are in line with the strong support the Mexican State has always been providing to local and regional governments since Poznan for their formal recognition in the texts, alongside the other members of the environmental integrity group, Switzerland and South Korea.

At the end of these two weeks, it is a whole package of agreements, the "Cancun agreements" that have been adopted by the Parties, with almost total consensus, still based on two tracks:

- the Kyoto Protocol, which future remains uncertain and will be determined at a later date

- the new Convention text (LCA), aiming at getting all Parties on board in the climate change actions.

Therefore, no binding agreement has been yet adopted, but these agreements are considered as setting the basis for the agreement to be adopted and enforce some of the main propositions of the Copenhagen Accord.

These agreements entail:

- Enforcement of the designation of a board with equal representation from developed and developing countries to design a Green climate fund under the Conference of the Parties.

- Confirmation of a fast start finance of 30 billion USD from industrialized countries to support climate action in the developing world up to 2012 and the intention to raise $100 billion in long-term funds by 2020

- Governments agree to boost action to curb emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries with technological and financial support (REDD +).

- The Industrialised countries targets and the Developing countries actions to reduce emissions are officially recognised under the multilateral process.

- The Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanisms has been strengthened to drive more major investments and technology into emission reduction projects in the developing countries.

- Parties launched a set of initiatives and institutions to protect the vulnerable countries from climate change and to deploy the money and technology needed.

- A new Cancún Adaptation Framework is established to allow better planning and implementation of adaptation projects in developing countries through increased financial and technical support, including a clear process for continuing work on loss and damage.

Representation at COP 21 in Cancun (29 November-10 December 2010)

In November 2010, UCLG World Council gave mandate to the Mayor of Mexico City, Marcelo Ebrard, to represent United Cities and Local Governments, the global organization of local, regional governments and their associations in the COP 16, and to bring forward the involvement and concrete actions of local and regional governments to Parties. This involvement is embodied in the Mexico City Pact that has been signed by 152 cities at the World Mayors Summit on Climate held in Mexico city on 21st November 2010, which was held in the continuation of UCLG third world Congress also hosted by Mexico City. During the second week of the Conference, a special Plenary was convened by the COP Presidency, where Mayor Ebrard presented the Mexico City Pact and the list of signatories who hereby commit to comply with measurable, verifiable and reportable local climate actions.

This constant and common work of local and subnational governments’ networks have led to important recognition in the "Cancun agreements":
- Local and subnational governments are now officially recognized as "governmental stakeholders" in the UNFCCC process.
- The Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanisms text refers in its preamble to subnational level to be taken into account when setting «standardised baselines»
- In the same document, Parties request the Board in charge of Clean development mechanisms to simplify the application for programme of activities, including for possible city-wide programmes: it is the first time that cities are explicitly mentioned in the UNFCCC documents.

These important steps for the future climate actions of local and regional governments have been raised and acknowledged during UCLG Press Conference convening Mr. Dantec, Vice Mayor of Nantes and UCLG spokesperson, Mr. Naidoo, Vice-Mayor of Durban, next host city of the COP (COP 17) and member of the UCLG negotiation climate group and Mrs. Davidson. Minister of environment of Wales as representative of NRG4SD.

COP 15: The Copenhagen Climate Change Conference (7-18 December 2009)

The 15th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC and the 5th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol took place in Copenhagen and was hosted by the Government of Denmark. Also sitting were the thirty-first sessions of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA), the tenth session of the Ad hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP), and the eighth session of the Ad hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA).

In order to provide a representative political voice that complements the work undertaken by thousands of cities across the world, the November 2009 Guangzhou World Council mandated a group of cities and regions to join the UCLG Climate Negotiation Group. Led by the City of Nantes, these local governments are following the international negotiations and advocating the interests of local governments in the different fields. UCLG was recognized as an observer organization at COP 15, enabling the deployment to Copenhagen of a 60-strong delegation that was active and visible during the run-up and the course of negotiations.

COP 13: Bali Climate Change Conference (December 2007)

On the occasion of the UN Climate Conference in Bali, Indonesia in December 2007, UCLG in collaboration with partner organizations such as ICLEI coordinated the international launching of the World Mayors and Local Government Climate Protection Agreement, which sets objectives and core targets to be met by cities to reduce global warming. The ratifying cities commit to work towards emission reduction even if not always immediate.

The UCLG Climate Negotiation Climate Group (November 2009)

In order to provide a representative political voice that compliments the work undertaken by thousands of cities across the world, the UCLG World Council, taking place in Guangzhou, November 2009, has mandated a group of cities and regions to join the UCLG Climate Negotiation Group. Led by the City of Nantes, these local governments are following the international negotiations and advocating the interests of local governments in the different fields.

Some of the Members:

- Nantes Metropole, France: With broad experience in following the negotiations, Nantes Metropole will lead the work of the group.

- Manaus, Brazil: As capital of the Amazonia region, Manaus is particularly concerned by the inclusion of a special chapter on the Amazon area in the international negotiations. Manaus will follow the negotiations on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries, Land Use Change and Forestry.

- Durban, South Africa: Holding important experience in Clean Mechanism for Development, Durban will follow discussions on the future financial and technical mechanisms.

- Dakar, Senegal: Climate Strategies cannot be disconnected from development strategies, Dakar will advocate the definition of new international cooperation assistance tools.

- A Chinese city, to be confirmed, will focus on the kinds of international support necessary for the definition of sustainable urban development strategies.

Regional initiatives

African Mayors at Climate Congress Urge Nations to Make Equitable Global Deal at UNFCC in Durban

Lyon Declaration of Regions and Federated States Engaged for the Climate