As many cities around the world are still facing devastating impacts of the pandemic, the most immediate test of any leaders’ commitment to climate action now is to ensure a green and just recovery, built on the principles of the Global Green New Deal.
C40 mayors have collaborated closely in 2020 to tackle together the double health and climate crisis, and have committed to do even more. Through the C40 network, and the C40 Global Mayors COVID-19 Recovery Task Force, mayors are not just showing what meeting science-based targets looks like. They are also inspiring other mayors to follow their example – to drive forward the climate solutions that our communities need to recover and thrive. 2020 has truly been an extraordinarily important year.
The levels of collaboration, engagement and commitment of our member cities in 2020 has been truly extraordinary
C40’s Participation Standards are guidelines for C40 membership, and include a number of mandatory requirements such as setting an ambitious target for reducing GHG emissions; publishing a climate action plan with concrete, target-meeting initiatives; increasing urban climate resilience; and actively sharing best practice examples with other cities through C40’s networks. To maintain the integrity of C40 as a network of outstanding climate leaders, and to help ensure that C40 members continue to collectively achieve meaningful global impact, we assessed our member cities’ performance against the C40 membership requirements in 2020, as we do every year, while adapting this assessment to also reflect COVID-19 related activities.
The most active C40 cities in each region
We are pleased to recognise last year’s three most active cities in each region. Not only did these cities take exceptional measures throughout 2020 and contributed additional resources to share best practices among cities, they also provided extraordinary thought leadership and represented the C40 network globally.
Congratulations to the most active cities in each region! We look forward to working with each of our member cities on the immediate priorities of all C40 mayors, as outlined in the new 2021-24 C40 Business Plan.
A new set of C40 minimum membership requirements, the Leadership Standards, has been approved by the C40 Steering Committee and took effect on 1 January 2021. They set C40’s direction for the next four years, and articulate how C40 mayors will deliver a green and just future through accelerating implementation of inclusive climate action plans and inspiring others through global leadership.