Kitchener among twenty-five municipalities across Canada selected for an intensive pilot with the leading global climate initiative
Kitchener – Kitchener has been selected to join the first Showcase Cities cohort led by the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) Canada. Over the next year, Kitchener will receive intensive support to help reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and adapt to climate change.
Municipalities are on the front lines of climate change, and through this pilot project which includes technical support, training, exclusive networking opportunities and access to tools and resources, Kitchener will advance its ambitious climate action objectives.
“I’m extremely pleased that Kitchener has been included in the GCoM pilot,” said Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic. “The detailed and actionable Corporate Climate Action Plan that council adopted in April lays out our path to meet the emission targets committed to under the Paris Agreement. By working with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and being selected for this pilot, we will have the resources and knowledge needed to make Kitchener’s climate action a model for municipalities across Canada and the world.”
Municipalities are leading the way on low-carbon solutions—from building retrofits to green infrastructure. And with municipalities influencing half of Canada’s GHG emissions, scaling up local solutions is key to meeting Canada’s climate targets
Environmental Leadership is one of the five goals outlined in Kitchener’s 2019-2022 Strategic Plan, with the City of Kitchener committed through various actions to meet the city’s GHG emissions target set out in the Paris Agreement. Mayor Vrbanovic was a delegate during the development of the Paris Agreement at the COP21 forum in 2015.
The mayor was also part of the delegation when Canada presented its Voluntary National Report on the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) at the United Nations in July, 2018. Kitchener has directly aligned its sustainability activities with the UNSDGs, and participating in this pilot is a continuation of Kitchener’s commitment to climate action through partnership with local, national and international organizations.
The Global Covenant of Mayors Canada is a collaboration between FCM, ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability, the Global Covenant of Mayors Secretariat and the International Urban Cooperation Project supported by funding from the European Union.
“Together we are creating ambitious plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and preparing our communities for the impacts of a changing climate,” said Megan Meaney, Executive Director of the Canada office of ICLEI.
The initiative combines two leading domestic climate programs, the Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) program and Building Adaptive and Resilient Communities (BARC), with the leading global climate program. The GCoM Canada is piloting this approach, which will build on FCM and ICLEI’s more than 25 years’ experience in delivering climate change programs in Canada.
-30-
About the Global Covenant of Mayors Canada partners
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities is the national voice of municipal governments, with nearly 2,000 members representing more than 90 per cent of the Canadian population.
ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability is an international association of local governments committed to sustainability.
The International Urban Cooperation (IUC) programme is part of a long-term strategy by the European Union to foster sustainable urban development in cooperation with both the public and private sectors.
The Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) is the largest global alliance for climate leadership, uniting a global coalition of nearly 10,000 cities and local governments. By 2030, GCoM cities and local governments could collectively reduce 1.3 billion tons of CO2 emissions per year. That’s the equivalent of taking 276 million cars off the road.
Associated links
FCM and Global Covenant of Mayors announce climate action pilot project
Backgrounder: GCoM Canada
For more information, please contact:
Jennifer Hassum
Director of Communications and Marketing
City of Kitchener
519.741.2200 x7046
Jennifer.Hassum@kitchener.ca
FCM Media Relations
(613) 907-6395
media@fcm.ca