Cities at the Climate Summit in Copenhagen

MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate release

Cities to raise their voices when nations gather at the Climate Summit in Copenhagen
next week.

Copenhagen, Friday, December 4, 2009- Cities and local governments around the
world must be recognized as partners to national governments if the fight against
climate change is to be won, ICLEI –Local Governments for Sustainability, said
today on the eve of the United Nations Climate Summit being held in Copenhagen
over the next two weeks.

"Failure is not an option: the world's citizens, through their cities and local
governments, representing more than half of the world's population and growing,
are urgently calling for a new, strong, comprehensive and global climate regime,
" said ICLEI President, David Cadman, before leaving Vancouver, Canada, to join
1200 city representatives attending the UN negotiations. "We need an international
collaboration that acknowledges the roles and responsibilities of every level
of government and of every citizen as essential to achieve a global, local carbon,
climate resilient future."

Cadman´s message is at the heart of a unique two-year process that cities and
local governments worldwide have organized through the Local Government Climate
Roadmap.

"We have throughout the negotiations to take up the offer of cities and local
governments to partner with them in the fight against climate change and to acknowledge
the efficiency of cities," says also Bertrand Delanöe, Mayor of Paris and President
of UCLG and adds "Agreements can and should be reached at Copenhagen based on
greater social justice in the organization of international relations. Copenhagen
should be a moment of courage and financial solidarity and changing the relations
between nations."

Cities make up only five per cent of the planet´s surface yet account for half
of the world´s population and consume 73 per cent of the world´s energy.

The pledges made by industrial states on their individual or joint GHG emissions
reduction commitments for a post-2012 period remain, collectively, far below
the recommendations of scientific experts. However, thousands of cities and local
governments, located in these industrial states are committed to ambitious emissions
reduction targets until 2020, 2030 and 2050.

Since 1990, local voluntary climate actions have shown that a considerable amount
of emissions reduction can be achieved in buildings, transport, waste, and energy
and in the planning of urban areas. Cities and local governments can thus successfully
support national governments in fulfilling their international binding commitments
in the post-2012 period. In developed and developing economies, cities and local
governments are continually demonstrating their capacity to act on climate change
by creating comprehensive solutions working innovatively with wind, water and
solar energy, and with waste management, recycling, transport and construction.

Ends

The Local Government Climate Roadmap process mirrors the "UN Climate Roadmap"
initiated at the UNFCCC Climate Change Talks in Bali in December 2007. It is
facilitated by ICLEI and includes ICLEI, UCLG, the C40 Climate Leadership Group,
the World Mayors Council on Climate Change and Metropolis.

ICLEI acts as the Constituency Focal Point to the United Nations Convention on
climate Change for Local Governments and Municipal Authorities. ICLEI will host
and facilitate the Local Government Climate Lounge in the UN COP 15 Conference
building in Copenhagen. (www.iclei.org/climate-roadmap/cop15) ICLEI is also a
coorganizer of the Climate Summit for Mayors, uniting Mayors from 100 large cities,
together with the City of Copenhagen and C40.

About the Climate Lounge
The work of cities and local governments will culminate in the Local Government
Climate Lounge - the advocacy base for the 1200+ registered local government
representatives at COP15. For the programme and location details please go to
http://www.iclei.org/climate-lounge

Further information:
www.iclei.org/climate-roadmap/media
www.cities-localgovernments.org

Contacts in Copenhagen

Michael Kessler, Local Government Climate Roadmap Media Relations
Mobile: +45 503 79 555
Email: mkessler@ya.com; mickessler188@gmail.com

Gino Van Begin, Deputy Secretary General, ICLEI – Local Governments for
Sustainability
Mobile: +45 503 79 777
Email: climate-roadmap@iclei.org

Ronan Dantec, Deputy Mayor of Nantes, UCLG Climate Negotiation Group
Mobile: + 33 671906097
Email: info@cities-localgovernments.org