Mayor Emanuel Announces 10 Additional Cities Sign the Chicago Climate Charter
67 Mayors now committed to achieving emissions reductions and moving forward with climate action
Mayor Emanuel announced today that ten additional cities have signed the Chicago Climate Charter, a first-of-its-kind international charter on climate change. The Chicago Climate Charter now represents 67 cities and tens of millions of people in cities across the world.
“While the Trump administration continues to bury their heads deeper in the sand when it comes to climate change, local leaders are confronting the challenge head-on,” Mayor Emanuel said. “I look forward to working with the growing number of mayors in cities across the country and the world to take decisive action to protect our planet and the health and safety of our residents."
These cities join a long list of municipal leaders including Mexico City Mayor Miguel Ángel Mancera, Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and late San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee who have taken decisive action on climate change following the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement.
Cities around the country continued to express interest in the Chicago Climate Charter in the weeks following the North American Climate Summit. The ten additional Mayors that signed on include:
- Mayor Denny Doyle of Beaverton, Oregon
- Mayor Suzanne Jones of Boulder, Colorado
- Mayor Wade Troxell of Fort Collins, Colorado
- Mayor Jim Throgmorton of Iowa City, Iowa
- Mayor Greg Fischer of Louisville, Kentucky
- Mayor Jorge Elorza of Providence, Rhode Island
- Mayor Hillary Schieve of Reno, Nevada
- Mayor Sam Liccardo of San Jose, California
- Mayor Chris Coleman of Saint Paul, Minnesota
- Mayor Joseph Curtatone of Somerville, Massachusetts
The initial Chicago Climate Charter was signed in early December at the North American Climate Summit, where leaders met to articulate commitments to the Paris Agreement and highlight the scope and scale of city climate action.
By signing the Chicago Climate Charter, cities pledge to:
- Achieve a percent reduction in carbon emissions in line with the Paris Agreement;
- Quantify, track and publicly report city emissions, consistent with standards and best practices of measurement and transparency;
- Advocate alongside other mayors for greater local authority and flexibility to develop policies and local laws that empower cities to take aggressive action on climate;
- Recognize and include groups traditionally underrepresented in climate policy;
- Incorporate the realities of climate change and its impacts into local infrastructure and emergency planning through strategies of adaptation and resilience;
- Support strong regional, state and federal policies and partnerships, as well as private sector initiatives, that incentivize the transition to a new climate economy; and
- Partner with experts, communities, businesses, environmental justice groups, advocates and other allies to develop holistic climate mitigation and resilience solutions.
“While the current administration continues to deny the impact of climate change, we in Beaverton understand that we must confront the truth about climate change, not hide from it,” said Mayor Denny Doyle of Beaverton, Oregon. “I am proud to sign the Chicago Climate Charter and work together with the growing number of global cities that understand protecting the environment and growing the economy will benefit the well-being of our residents, as well as the environment.”
Cities are engaged and ready to take decisive action. Many local leaders will make individual and specific commitments to combat climate change. There are many specific pledges, including: investing in public transit systems to reduce the carbon footprint; providing safe public transportation and accessible land use; accelerating affordable renewable energy access; and reducing the carbon footprint in new and existing public and private buildings and infrastructure.
“We are pleased to sign the Chicago Climate Charter to emphasize our commitment to leading through action by demonstrating practical solutions,” said Mayor Wade Troxell of Fort Collins. “In Fort Collins, our pragmatic approach pairs our drive to improve community vitality with realistic, measurable actions improving our future. Our climate actions since 2005 have put us halfway to our 2020 goal of reducing emissions 20 percent while growing our population and economy.”
Since the Trump administration’s decision to pull out of the Paris Agreement, cities across the United States and around of the world have shown their commitment to creating a truly sustainable future for their residents. Mayors are committed to working through existing organizations, including Climate Mayors, C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, the Urban Sustainability Directors Network and ICLEI to develop partnerships with other cities. These commitments made under the Chicago Climate Charter will be clustered around central ideas and themes to better aggregate impact and provide guidance for Mayors who are looking to peers for new ideas.
The North American Climate Summit was hosted by Mayor Emanuel, in concert with the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy. The Summit is supported by the Joyce Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation and the Crown Family Philanthropies.
A copy of the Chicago Climate Charter can be found at northamericanclimatesummit.com.
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