Below is a summary of ICLEI’s position following the outcomes of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP29):
We, the undersigned local and regional leaders from ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability who attended COP29, left Baku feeling mixed about the outcomes, but steadfast in our resolve: local and regional governments are more needed than ever to ensure that climate action and adaptation remains on track.
The ICLEI Network of local and regional governments are united in our mission for sustainability. Guided by our five pathways towards sustainable development – equitable development, zero emission development, nature-based development, circular development and resilient development – our overall goal is to significantly scale up and expand the commitments of local and regional governments to create sustainable, resilient, inclusive and safe cities, towns and regions around the world.
Our network, ICLEI, plays a unique role within the climate COP space. For over twenty years, the Local Governments and Municipal Authorities (LGMA) Constituency has been a driving force in empowering local and regional governments to advocate within the global climate discussions, and ICLEI serves as the official focal point of the LGMA to the UNFCCC. This year, the LGMA had a strong joint position going into COP29 that was the basis for local and other subnational advocacy at COP29, which we actively endorsed and supported.
Local and regional leaders from ICLEI went to COP29 to show our critical role in achieving not only our own local and regional climate goals but in following through on ambitious national and global climate action goals. Our message is clear: nations cannot do this alone.
But our nations also have to be our partners in ambition. This year, when the multilateral community was under extreme pressure, the results were mixed. We welcome the new climate finance deal, which triples the existing amount of investment, and is the first new deal on finance in 15 years. But the amount also falls far short of what is truly needed to support every community around the world to combat climate change and adapt to its hazards.
In almost every other respect, Parties at COP29 fell short on the urgency and ambition that is needed to meet the moment.
In these difficult times where global processes are seriously threatened, our cities and regions will continue to be an even stronger partner for all national governments and the global community who wish to raise ambition, deliver action and uphold global solidarity.
In the agenda and on the sidelines of COP29, we saw this over and over again. COP29 hosted the third third Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change on 20 November, Urbanization Day at the COP, which emphasized the vital role cities must play in addressing the climate crisis and accelerating sustainable urban development. ICLEI’s leaders had a seat at the table to deliver our message to accelerate multilevel action; finance urbanization fairly; and build synergies between mitigation, adaptation, and biodiversity to create a healthier planet.
Many of ICLEI’s local and regional government leaders have been active promoters of COP28’s CHAMP initiative – the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnership (CHAMP) for Climate Action – worldwide. CHAMP’s influence was on display at COP29 with the announcement of Brazil’s new updated national climate goal, which references working with all levels of government and CHAMP as levers for increasing ambition.
One silver lining from COP29 is the inspiration that we can take from the political consensus and goodwill that exists around the local and subnational climate space. In the context of the contentious negotiations around mitigation agreements at COP29, Parties agreed that their work on buildings and urbanization had been some of the most promising. Let us build on that momentum towards the important mid-year climate conference in Bonn in 2025 and then towards COP30 in Belem.
As we look towards COP30, we offer up two beacons to guide our fellow cities and regions through the coming months. The first is ICLEI’s annual Daring Cities Forum, which will convene in 2025 alongside the Bonn climate talks. With the outcomes of COP29 relying on the Bonn climate talks to deliver in areas where Baku could not, it will be more important than ever for local and regional leaders to be present to make their voices heard. Daring Cities 2025 will be an important part of that effort, and we invite you to join us.
Second, we invite you to hold a Town Hall COP in your own community, as a demonstrated method of aligning national goals with local action. At COP29, ICLEI announced a partnership with EARTHDAY.ORG to bring the global conversation of Town Hall COPs around the world on Earth Day 2025. A Town Hall COP is a dynamic community engagement platform bringing COP-style discussions to cities, towns, and regions. The event is a COP brought to the local level, bringing administration, experts, local stakeholders and civil society together to assess and discuss the local experience of climate change, and strategies for climate mitigation, adaptation and loss and damage in a condensed format.
While COP29 may not have fully met expectations, ICLEI’s network of local and regional governments stands unwavering in its commitment to multilevel and multilateral solutions to the climate crisis. We are demonstrating our dedication to climate action and calling on governments and global partners to match our ambition.
Signed,
Minna Arve, Mayor, Turku (Finland), ICLEI First Vice President
Marjorie Kauffmann, State Secretary for Environment and Infrastructure, Rio Grande do Sul, (Brazil), ICLEI Vice President
Mohamed Sefiani, Mayor, Chefchaouen (Morocco), ICLEI Vice President
Samuel Assefa, Director, California State Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (US)
M. Cemil Arslan, Secretary General, Marmara Municipalities Union (Türkiye)
Axel Schmidt Grael, Mayor, Municipality of Niterói (Brazil); ICLEI Global Executive Committee Climate Action Support Portfolio Chair
Susan Hughes-Smith, Monroe County Legislator representing District 14, Chair of Environment and Public Works, Monroe County, NY (US)
Patricia Lock Dawson, Mayor, Riverside, CA (US); Chair, Big City Mayors Association of California
Manuel de Araujo, Mayor, Quelimane (Mozambique); Vice-chairperson of the Regional Executive Committee of ICLEI Africa; member of the Regional Mayors Forum of the CoM SSA
Takaaki Ito, Executive Director, City of Yokohama (Japan)
Honourable Cllr. Kenalemang Rose Phukuntsi, Mayor, Tswelopele municipality (South Africa); Representative of the Presidential Climate Change Commission at the South African Local Government Association (SALGA)
Hayato Shimizu, Mayor, Saitama City (Japan)
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