As a former mayor, I know cities are key to winning the battle against climate change.
Cities produce around 70% of global carbon emissions through traffic congestion, manufacturing, and poorly insulated homes and workplaces. In the lower-income world, rapidly growing cities produce ever-increasing amounts of domestic and industrial waste without proper disposal infrastructure in place.
Compounding this, the effects of COVID-19, conflicts, and climate change itself — the “triple C” of contemporary crises — are often felt most acutely in urban areas, straining their resources and damaging their environment further.