At the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) 86th Winter Meeting, Frank Cownie and Ashok Sridharan join mayors representing the ICLEI network in setting the tone for local climate action in 2018.
At the Climate Summit of Local and Regional Leaders at COP23, the 23rd United Nations Climate Change Conference last November in Bonn, Germany, local and regional leaders from around the world adopted the Bonn-Fiji Commitment, pledging to raise climate action ambition and help deliver the Paris Agreement. At the USCM, U.S. and international mayors are following through on that commitment by making sure that local climate action is at the forefront of the discussion at an event that covers a range of local issues, from criminal justice to immigration and tourism.
Following unprecedented levels of engagement by local and regional leaders at COP23, international cooperation on climate at the subnational level is growing. The USCM meeting follows a major announcement from Mayor Bill De Blasio of New York early this year that the city will divest from fossil fuels and sue oil companies for climate damages – an unprecedented move.
Ashok Sridharan, Mayor of Bonn and First Vice President of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability is engaging with U.S. mayors, highlighting upcoming global ICLEI events including Resilient Cities 2018 in Bonn and ICLEI World Congress 2018 in Montréal.
He is joined by a delegation of U.S. and international mayors from the ICLEI network, including; Mayor Frank Cownie of Des Moines, member of Board of ICLEI US, Executive Committee of US Conference of Mayors and Global Executive Committe of ICLEI, Mayor William Peduto of Pittsburgh, newest member of Board of ICLEI US, Mayor Libby Schaff of Oakland, Mayor Don Iveson of Edmonton, host of the Cities IPCC Conference in March 2018, Mayor Markus Lewe of Münster and President of the German Association of Cities (DST) and Mayor Thomas Kufen of Essen, lead member of Urban Transitions Alliance launched at COP23 as part of a legacy of Essen as European Green Capital 2017.
Frank Cownie and Ashok Sridharan will be underline the importance of collaboration between U.S. and European cities at the session on climate action.
Ashok Sridharan participated at the meeting as part of his engagement with the delegation of Mayors from State of North-Rhein Westphalia facilitated by the German Marshall Fund.
Source: Newsletter ICLEI, 30.01.2018