- 90+ megacities
- 10,000 actions to reduce climate change
- 1.5C constraining global temperature rise
With a majority of the world’s population now living in cities, and a rapidly growing urban population in the developing world, cities are at the forefront of the issues caused by climate change. Arup has been a partner to C40 Cities for ten years, carrying out vital research to help cities measure, manage, and plan climate actions, empowering their leaders to make vital decisions. Designers and engineers can make an important contribution to the debate, developing new thinking around transport, energy and water infrastructure, to produce a more sustainable world.
What does this mean for Cities?
In our latest report with C40, Deadline 2020: How cities will get the job done we provide an analysis of the contribution that the 84 global C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40) cities need to make to convert the agreement from aspiration into reality.
Meeting those challenging targets is now the C40’s overriding aim. Doing so requires bespoke Climate Action Plans for every major city – responding to specific local factors and building on global best practice. To support cities in achieving their goals, Arup and C4 co-created the Climate Action Planning Framework which sets the standard for city climate action plans that meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement. New York City (NYC) Mayor Bill de Blasio has committed the city to the Paris Agreement targets, the first city in the world to do so. As a C40 member city, NYC sought guidance on how to enhance their existing climate plan. We contributed to the draft plan and advised specifically on its zero carbon ambition.
“I am proud that New York City will play its part and that we are joining in common cause with hundreds of local governments around this nation and the world. Together, we will show that the people will solve this problem at the grassroots. ” Bill de Blasio New York City Mayor
The future is urban, and bright
C40’s vision of a bright future is based on the will, ingenuity and commitment of city leaders to put the world on a low-carbon development path.
By 2050, cities will be compact, connected and coordinated. They will have dense rather than sprawling urban forms, notable for their vibrant greenbelts and green roofs. Urban citizens will enjoy a high degree of mobility based primarily on walking, cycling, and public transport. Having achieved their long-term targets for carbon neutrality, cities will enjoy clean sources of energy, including local and district energy solutions.
Devni Acharya, Senior Consultant has been on secondment with the C40 Cities Climate Leadership, developing climate action plans for five cities in the region which are especially susceptible to the impacts of climate change.
