Awarding ambitious climate action
In October 2022, C40 and Bloomberg Philanthropies celebrated ten cities whose climate projects stood out for their ambition, impact and inclusivity.
Announced at the C40 World Mayors Summit 2022 in Buenos Aires, the awards recognised mayors leading in five areas:
- Cleaning air
- Accelerating action in critical sectors
- Building resilience
- Driving innovation
- Building a climate movement
Explore the winning projects
Cleaning the Air We Breathe
Winners included:
Beijing, China
Beijing phased out coal from its heating system, cutting PM2.5 pollution by 59% and supporting nearly 1 million homes to switch to cleaner alternatives.
Pune, India
Pune rapidly expanded its electric bus fleet to 40% of all city buses, improving air quality while keeping fares affordable for lower-income residents.
Accelerating Immediate Action in Critical Sectors
Winners included:
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Addis Ababa rolled out decentralised composting and recycling through community-led micro-businesses.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Amsterdam cut gas consumption by 10% in a matter of months through a city-wide energy reduction drive.
Building Climate Resilience
Winners included:
Dhaka North, Bangladesh
Dhaka North expanded green spaces by 70% to reduce heat and flooding risk.
Metropolitan Area of Guadalajara, Mexico
Guadalajara installed rainwater harvesting systems in drought-vulnerable neighbourhoods.
Innovative Climate Solutions
Winners included:
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Freetown planted over half a million trees using digital tracking and community growing.
São Paulo, Brazil
São Paulo introduced sustainable school menus to reduce unsustainable consumption and food insecurity.
Building a Climate Movement
Winners included:
Seattle, USA
Seattle launched a Green New Deal that centres communities most affected by environmental injustice.
Tokyo, Japan / Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur partnered across the Global North-South divide to decarbonise buildings.
ABOUT THE AWARDS
Following a rigorous assessment of all finalist projects, the award winners were decided by a global panel of influential climate leaders, philanthropists and city decision-makers.
Twenty C40 cities were short-listed for the awards, providing case studies of city climate leadership in diverse global contexts that can be learned from and replicated to create safer, healthier and more resilient cities.
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