Media

Deutsche Welle: Climate change: Greenhouse gas emissions decline in cities from Berlin to New York

Twenty-seven major cities, including Berlin, London, Los Angeles, New York and Paris, have seen greenhouse gas emissions fall over a five-year period to levels at least 10 percent lower than their peak, they announced Thursday at a global climate summit in San Francisco. The milestone was reached by cutting their usage of fossil-fuel-generated electricity, expanding their public transportation networks and reducing waste, according to C40 Cities, a network of large cities acting as leaders in combatting climate change.

BBC News: Cities lead the way on curbing carbon emissions

The C40 Cities group is an umbrella organisation that co-ordinates the climate change activities of 96 major urban centres around the world. Back in 2015, their research showed that if the planet was to keep to the lower, 1.5-degree-Celsius target agreed in the Paris climate pact, then major cities would have to peak their emissions of CO2 by 2020 at the latest. This new analysis by the group shows that 27 of these cities saw their emissions peak by 2012 and then fall over a five-year period. Those emissions are now at least 10% lower than at their zenith.

Los Angeles Times: In 27 cities, emissions are declining and economies are growing

Climate scientists warn that global emissions need to peak by 2020 if the planet is to dodge catastrophic warming. At the summit Thursday, 27 cities announced they have already met that goal, and their emissions are on the decline even as their economies are growing.

WIRED: Emissions Have Already Peaked In 27 Cities - And Keep Falling

Today, as politicians, business leaders, and activists gather for the Global Climate Action Summit, in San Francisco, C40 is announcing that 27 cities—including New York, London, and Rome—have reached a peak in emissions, and have seen at least a 10 percent drop from their peak. That’s a big deal in the fight against climate change.

GreenBiz: Here's new research attendees are debating at the Global Climate Action Summit

It’s an oft-reported statistic: Cities account for almost three-quarters of global GHG emissions, which makes them an obvious and urgent focus for new policies meant to address climate change. Those actions could affect vulnerable populations very directly, according to a research released this week by C40 Cities in collaboration with the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy and the NewClimate Institute. Between now and 2030, energy efficiency programs and policies to adopt renewable energy for district-level heating and cooling could result in 13.7 million new jobs and prevent 1.3 million "premature" deaths annually, the report predicts.

El Financiero: Se evitarían 1.3 millones de muertes si se aplican medidas contra el cambio climático

En colaboración con el Pacto Global de los Alcaldes por el Clima y la Energía, y el Instituto NewClimate, los datos dados a conocer por el C40 revelan que las ambiciosas políticas urbanas contra el cambio climático pueden llegan a reducir sustancialmente las emisiones de dióxido de carbono en todo el mundo, además de ofrecer grandes beneficios económicos y de salud pública a las ciudades.

San Francisco Chronicle: Cities rise to shape our climate future

As the mayors of San Francisco and Paris, we are unequivocal when we say that cities are on the front lines of combatting global climate change. When you consider that cities account for more than 70 percent of global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions, it is easy to understand why cities also need to be a part of the solution.

Agence France-Presse: Paris, Tokyo, New York and others pledge to slash waste

By slashing food waste and improving waste management and recycling, 23 global cities and regions representing 150 million people pledged Tuesday to significantly cut the pollution-causing garbage they generate by 2030. Places like New York, Tokyo, London, Paris and Sydney vowed to "cut the amount of waste generated by each citizen 15 percent by 2030," said a statement from C40 Cities, a global network dedicated to fighting climate change.

Smart Cities Dive: 19 mayors commit to make all buildings net-zero carbon by 2050

Mayors from 19 cities signed the Net Zero Carbon Buildings Declaration on Thursday, a pledge to ensure new buildings operate at net-zero carbon by 2030, with all buildings following suit by 2050. The mayors have also pledged to "owning, occupying and developing only assets that are net-zero carbon in operation" by 2030.

Curbed: The impact a year after the U.S. left the Paris agreement

After Trump announced the United States would be leaving the Paris climate accord, other politicians filled the vacuum. Hundreds of city leaders pledged to live up to the Paris agreement and signed on as members of the Climate Mayors, a bipartisan, peer-to-peer network of mayors working to demonstrate leadership on climate change.