Announcing the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy

Last week, UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change, Michael Bloomberg, European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres, and Deputy Mayor Patrick Klugman of Paris, announced a historic feat — the unprecedented merger of the Compact of Mayors and the Covenant of Mayors.

Both the Compact of Mayors and the Covenant of Mayors represent cities on the front lines of climate change as their local leaders lead the way to meet the goals set by the Paris Agreement. By creating the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy, two key initiatives are being brought together to make an even greater climate action impact at the local level. The Compact of Mayors, with 515 cities, representing 435,203,481 people worldwide or 6.01% of the total global population, announced in Paris at the COP21 that Compact cities were set to deliver half of the global urban potential greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions available by 2020. The Covenant of Mayors, with 6,827 signatories representing 211,517,229 people, accounts for 15 percent of the EU-28 CO2 emissions reduction target by 2020.

What makes this announcement so historic is the shear volume of cities being united under a single coalition: a total of more than 7,100 cities will be committed to the newly formed Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy. Imagine the global impact these two organizations will now have as one single entity. As the largest global coalition of cities fighting climate change, city commitments to sustainable climate action with see more support, more engagement, and more collaboration as they tackle the defining issue of our time.

The announcement of the merger, made at a press conference event at the European Commission in Brussels, was met with much excitement and rigor from cities, our partner networks, and other key climate leaders. Below are a few highlights:

• Politico Brussels’ exclusive interview with Michael Bloomberg and Maros Šefčovič.
• A joint op-ed by Michael Bloomberg and Maros Šefčovič published in The Guardian.
• Michael Bloomberg wrote a letter to Compact of Mayors cities sharing the significance of their role in the new alliance.
• C40 Cities Chair and Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes shared his support for cities on the front lines of climate change and action in the Huffington Post World Post.
• Mark Watts, Executive Director of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group and Gino Van Begin, Secretary General, ICLEI — Local Governments for Sustainability wrote a joint op-ed in Eco Watch on the global impact the newly launched Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy.

And it is the very support of these groups and individuals — leaders like UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and partners like C40 Cities, ICLEI, UCLG — that will continue to push our commitments forward, accelerate climate action at all levels of government, and successfully attain the cleaner future we are striving for around the world.

To read more about the merger, see the below news stories:

• Citiscope: Merger creates world’s largest network of cities fighting climate change
• Reuters: Cities forge world’s largest alliance to curb climate change
• Forbes: New Coalition Of 7100 Cities Launched To Tackle More Effectively Climate Change

For more information on merger between the Compact of Mayors and Covenant of Mayors please visit: www.globalcovenantofmayors.org

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