Enhancing local climate action: Moving toward greater and greener resilience 

This blog post was written by Dewi Sari and Kanak Gokarn with contributions from the Resilient Development and Sustainable Energy teams of ICLEI World Secretariat. The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has brought renewed attention to the close connections between our natural environments, economies, and human well-being. While cities have been contending with the immediate health impacts 

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TUMI E-Bus Mission aims to electrify public transit across the Global South

Main photo: [Left to right] Rohan Modi, advisor for Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ); Tu My Tran, Head of Sustainable Mobility, ICLEI World Secretariat; and Philip Turner, Head of Sustainable Development at International Association of Public Transport (UITP), discuss the potential for expanding electric buses through the TUMI E-Bus Mission City Network at the 

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Yucatán capital Mérida becomes fourth city to join climate insurance program

Photo: Renán Barrera (left), Mayor of Mérida, Mexico, and Edgar Villaseñor Franco, ICLEI Director for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean (MECS), after signing the letter of intent to join the Urban Infrastructure Insurance Facility project. Mérida, Mexico, capital of the Yucatán Peninsula, became the fourth pilot city to express interest in joining the Urban 

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Putting people at the heart of integrated climate action

Panelists and organizers for “Nothing about us without us: How to engage young people in co-creating sustainability policies?” included (left to right) Olga Krajewska, ICLEI Europe; Fruzsina Vargha, Sfântu-Gheorghe, Romania; Chilando Chitangala, Lusaka, Zambia; Jose Nicolas Arenas, Envigado, Colombia; Vlora Makolli, Together in Association, Sweden; Anne Louise Meincke, Cities4Children Alliance, Denmark; and Coline Blache, ICLEI 

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Five events to attend this Urban October

Urban October is a UN-organized, jam-packed calendar of opportunities for everyone wanting to be a part of the conversation on city issues and urban sustainability. Cities are responsible for 70 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions – which is why Urban October 2021 will focus on the climate emergency. Urban October provides a universal space 

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Daring Cities 2020: Top 5 most popular thematic sessions

A first-of-its kind virtual event, Daring Cities 2020 positioned itself as the global forum for urban leaders taking action on the climate emergency. With 100 sessions and more than 200 hours of online discussions designed with urban leaders in mind, the event unfolded over the span of three weeks. The four plenary days at the 

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The crucial role of local governments in South Korea’s bold actions towards carbon neutrality by 2050

On 5 June 2020, World Environment Day, 226 local governments in South Korea gathered at the national assembly to declare a climate emergency. One month later, on 7 July 2020, 80 sub-national governments (17 provincial and 63 local governments) launched the Korean Local Governments’ Action Alliance for Carbon-Neutrality and urged nation-wide action for carbon neutrality 

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Daring Cities closing balances bold initiatives with challenges that lie ahead

Inspiring city initiatives in the fight against climate change have sprung up around the world, from the conversion of former landfill sites into wetlands in Buenos Aires, to Delhi closing its most polluting power plant, to Guangzhou electrifying its entire bus network. At the same time, questions linger over why cities like Lagos or Dakar 

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Cities rally around nature in the quest to become more resilient

In Montreal, they’re building Canada’s largest urban park. Once complete, the 8,000-hectare nature sanctuary will be eight times as large as New York’s Central Park.  In Bonn, green roofs are now mandatory for any surface larger than 200 square metres.  And 100 cities across Europe are currently involved in over 1,000 nature-based best practice solutions 

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With goal of becoming world’s first climate resilient country, Dominica inspires cities to better prepare for extreme weather conditions

Three years ago, the Caribbean island of Dominica was battered by Hurricane Maria’s winds of up to 250 km. Now, the island nation has announced plans to become the world’s first climate resilient country by 2030.  In the wake of that announcement, Dominica spokesperson Francine Baron took time to expand on the drive behind her 

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