A Tale of Two Cities: Empowering local governments to combat transnational threats
The recent botched response of the international community to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has illustrated that too many countries are too ill-equipped to deal with 21st century threats that transcend territorial boundaries and demand well-coordinated strategies. Despite their hardest efforts, nation-states were simply unable to contain this pandemic by relying on conventional approaches and traditional policy tools.
We have witnessed the failure of traditional policy tools to adequately address transnational crises before. For instance, countries across the globe were unable to shield themselves against the effects of the 2007-8 financial crisis as traditional fiscal and monetary tools failed to contend with increasingly complex and globalized capital markets. Another example is the ineffective response of the E.U. to the 2015 migrant crisis which instigated a political realignment in Europe.
Given the emerging challenges posed by global issues, there is an increasing need for innovative policy solutions that can effectively resolve transnational threats while working within existing political and resource constraints. In meeting this demand, cities can play a crucial role as hubs of innovation and creativity that have an enormous potential to effectively tackle transnational threats. One of the most hopeful examples of the role that cities can play in overcoming complex transnational issues is the fight against climate change.
Cities are a major source of carbon emissions as 55 per cent of the world’s population lives in urban centres; 82 per cent of North Americans and 74 per cent of Europeans are city dwellers. Cities consume almost 66 per cent of the world’s energy and account for nearly 70 per cent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions. Nevertheless, cities are playing a pivotal role in combatting climate change, as they have the ability to scale up solutions quickly and efficiently due to their wealth of resources and human capital, as well as their ability to creatively operate within financial constraints. This is well recognized under the Paris Agreement.
The Paris Agreement, currently the cornerstone of international efforts to mitigate climate change, has empowered local governments through its framework of hybrid multilateralism. Under this framework, local governments play an instrumental role by monitoring countries’ efforts and encouraging them to increase their commitments. These commitments are stipulated through predetermined state-led actions referred to as nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Furthermore, cities act as contributors and governing partners to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This regulatory structure has unleashed the full potential of cities to devise innovative policy tools, and to engage in effective resource mobilization to combat climate change.
The role of cities became particularly apparent after the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, which left a huge void in climate leadership. In response, cities in the U.S. and across the world have begun to build broad-based coalitions to fill this void, such as the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate Change & Energy, the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, the U.S. Climate Alliance, and many more. The U.S. Climate Alliance alone represents a combined economic output of 11.7 trillion dollars – the third largest GDP in the world, only behind the U.S. and China. The 100 largest cities in the U.S. have now all pledged to uphold the Paris Agreement. According to the New Climate Institute, global greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by 33 per cent – equivalent to 15 to 23 gigatons of emissions each year – by 2030 if subnational climate coalitions like the ones mentioned meet their goals. All of this highlights the benefits and promises of a city-centric approach to fighting climate change.
Individual cities have also risen to the forefront of the fight on climate change, with many proposing ambitious climate policy agendas. For example, Oslo, Norway hopes to have its entire public transportation system emission-free by 2028. Similarly, London expects its taxis and ride-share vehicles to be emission-free by 2033. Meanwhile, New York City will begin its congestion pricing program in 2021, becoming the first U.S. city to do so, while Seattle looks to do the same. Thus, cooperative initiatives in parallel with Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) have the potential to allow the international community to successfully achieve the 1.5 °C temperature benchmark of the Paris Agreement.
Cities are engines of economic growth, and centres of entrepreneurship and innovation. As such, they play a critical role in climate governance as they can set ambitious and progressive agendas, leverage community networks, and work directly with local level stakeholders. In the absence of proper U.S. climate leadership, especially, this role is as essential as ever, and many cities have already stepped up to promote innovative policies, accountability, and transparency in the fight against climate change.